Riverside Co. Reps At Odds Over Trump's Tax Plan

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA – Two Riverside County congressional representatives supported a tax reform package approved Tuesday by the House of Representatives, calling it "historic" and "an investment" in the future, while two others voted against the legislation, condemning it as a reward to big business and unfair to the working class.

H.R. 1, the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act, passed out of the House on a vote of 227-203, with no Democrats voting in favor, along with a dozen Republicans.

"This is a historic day," said Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Temecula. "This vote keeps an important promise to the American people that their elected representatives believe they deserve to keep more of their hard-earned money, that they deserve a tax code that's more simple and fair, that they deserve an economy with the opportunity to grow and thrive without the burden and interference coming from Washington."

Hunter described the bill as the first serious attempt to reform the federal tax code since President Ronald Reagan's overhaul in the mid-1980s.

The congressman said he was satisfied that flaws in the original bill approved last month had been addressed following debate by a House-Senate conference committee.

"This tax bill is an investment in America's future by bringing good- paying manufacturing jobs and investment dollars back to the U.S. from Mexico and overseas," Hunter said. "This tax bill is an investment in the American people, who know best how to care for their families and their future. This tax bill is an investment in which I am confident we are going to see immediate returns."

Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Corona, hailed the bill as "the most pro-growth tax policy our country has seen in decades."

"Lower taxes, more jobs and higher wages are on the way," Calvert said. "I am confident that our economy is now poised for tremendous growth thanks to the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. As soon as next month, Americans will see and feel the impact of this bill by having more money in their paychecks."
He said special interest deductions in the tax code would be scaled back, representing a "monumental step forward in ... creating a more fair system that will achieve the growth our economy experienced after the Reagan tax reform."

Reps. Raul Ruiz, D-Palm Springs, and Mark Takano, D-Riverside, repudiated the bill as a fiscally irresponsible giveaway to the wealthy and detrimental to poorer Americans.

"Republicans used a rushed and partisan process to pass an immoral piece of legislation that cuts taxes for corporations and the wealthiest Americans, while adding more than a trillion dollars to the deficit," Takano said.

He was particularly incensed over the bill's repeal of the individual mandate that is at the core of the Affordable Care Act known as Obamacare, making it a legal requirement to have health insurance, or face penalties. H.R. 1 will make the penalty zero as of Jan. 1, 2019, effectively ending the requirement.

"This is not a middle-class tax cut," the congressman said. "The majority of the benefits will go to the wealthiest one percent of Americans. This is not a jobs bill. Corporations will use these tax cuts to reward shareholders and invest in automation, which will accelerate job losses."

Ruiz said he believed seniors and others stood to lose from the passage of H.R. 1.

"I voted against the current tax plan that will force $100 billion in cuts to Medicare over the next four years and increase taxes on tens of millions of middle-class families," he said. "At the same time, this plan gives 83 percent of the tax breaks to the wealthiest 1 percent and explodes the deficit by $1.5 trillion. Congress must put partisanship aside and pass a bipartisan bill that truly protects our seniors and prioritizes middle-class families to stimulate our economy."

Under the bill, the U.S. corporate tax rate would be chopped from 35 percent -- among the highest in the world -- to 20 percent. The standard income tax deduction for individuals would nearly double, from $6,500 now to $12,000 next year. Married couples would see their deductions jump from $13,000 to $24,000, lessening the need to itemize deductions.

The seven existing income tax brackets would be adjusted slightly, with the biggest change coming to the top margin, which would drop from just under 40 percent to 37 percent, benefiting earners making more than $400,000 a year.

State and local tax -- SALT -- deductions would be capped at $10,000 annually under the bill, one of the reasons why a dozen GOP lawmakers broke from the majority on H.R. 1. The mortgage interest tax deduction would drop from $1 million to $750,000.

There would be new business tax exemptions, as well as write-offs for investments, under the legislation, which is expected to muster sufficient votes to pass the Senate and be signed into law by President Donald Trump before Christmas.

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--City News Service/Pixabay image via geralt