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Republican Freshman Letter Urging Quick Action on Tax Extenders

Friday, September 7th, 2012

Yesterday, Paul Suplizio, President of the WOTC Coalition, sent me a copy of an important letter being organized by freshman Republican members of Congress.  The letter is addressed to Dave Camp, Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee and to Patrick J. Tiberi, Chairman of Ways and Means Select Revenue Measures Subcommittee.

The letter praises these leaders for their support of the recent committee hearings analyzing the expiring tax extenders.  It also offers additional encouragement for what the letter calls “an appropriate and fiscally responsible transition period to prevent any negative economic impacts.”

In other words, don’t allow these important tax provisions to simply die through expiration without giving Congress time to consider them on their individual merits.

As of yesterday, the letter had been signed by at least fourteen Republican members.

Senate leadership has already announced some support for a tax extenders bill. Paul Suplizio added this additional analysis of the situation:

While working to get the Senate to pass some version of Baucus/Hatch in the next three weeks, it’s just as critical to coax Chairman Camp to report a tax extenders bill that reflects what House leaders want and the House will get behind. Let’s go to work mobilizing all the House Republican resources we’ve developed in the fifty states in recent months for this task.

Refresh your contacts by phone and e-mail, and ask them to speak to Camp or at least drop him a note. Yes, the House can go to conference on the Senate bill alone, but we will be much closer to a final bill if we can get Ways and Means to take a stand and report a measure that reflects what the Republican majority will support. The Senate Finance Committee has spoken, it’s time for the Ways and Means Committee to act.

 

The thing to do now is to urge your state’s freshman republican Congress members to sign the letter.

 

 

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Tax Tug of War Continues – Tax Extenders Missing but Still on Radar

Wednesday, July 25th, 2012

The U.S. Senate voted today to pass a Democrat version of the 2012 tax cut bill. The House of Representatives introduced its own Republican version yesterday and will vote on it next week.   While neither proposal addresses WOTC or the majority of other tax extenders, no one expects either version to become law.  And so the tug of war continues.

We received the following analysis and advice tonight from Paul Suplizio, President of the WOTC Coalition.  It is reprinted here with permission.

 

From: Paul Suplizio wotc@cox.net
Sent: Wednesday, July 25, 2012 11:30 PM
Subject: Senate Passes Obama Tax Proposals, House Republicans Write Tax Bill Without Extenders

July 25, 2012

By agreement of the two Leaders waiving filibuster, the Senate today voted 51-48 to pass S.3412, the “Middle Class Tax Cut Act of 2012” introduced by Majority Leader Harry Reid, containing President Obama’s tax plan extending the Bush tax cuts for all but high earners, increasing the capital gains rate to 20% and eliminating the 15% dividend preference.

Vice-President Joe Biden presided over the Senate, prepared to vote in case of a tie.

In prior action, the Senate defeated by 54-45 the Republican alternative, S. 3413, the “Tax Hike Prevention Act,” introduced by Senator Orrin Hatch. The Republican alternative would extend the Bush tax cuts for a year, increase AMT relief, and continue full expensing.

WOTC and other tax extenders were not included in the bill. Texts of S.3412 and S.3413 are at www.thomas.gov.

Yesterday House Republicans introduced their tax bill, H.R. 8, the “Job Protection and Recession Prevention Act of 2012” to be voted on next week.

H.R. 8 was introduced by Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp and co-sponsored by all Ways and Means Republicans, including WOTC co-sponsors Congressman Aaron Schock and Congresswoman Lynn Jenkins. A formal mark-up wasn’t held.

WOTC and other extenders aren’t included in H.R. 8. The bill extends the Bush tax cuts for a year, continues full expensing, expands Coverdell Education Savings Accounts and the Adoption Credit, but reduces the Child Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit and terminates the American Opportunity Credit.

Text of H.R. 8 is not yet available, but a full “Technical Explanation of H.R. 8” (JCX-63-12) and “Estimated Revenue Effects of H.R. 8” (JCX-64-12) are at the Joint Committee on Taxation web site, www.jct.gov.

Democrats will be allowed a vote on their alternative plan when H.R. 8 goes to the floor. Yesterday, Democratic Caucus Chairman John Larsen said tax extenders were one of several possibilities for a Democratic bill, but as in the Senate, the core of any Democratic alternative will be the President’s proposals on the Bush tax cuts and restoring cuts in the Child Credit, Earned Income Tax Credit, and American Opportunity Tax Credit.

The vote in the House on H.R. 8 is expected to be the reverse of action taken by the Senate—Republicans will first vote down the Democratic alternative, then pass a one-year extension of the Bush tax cuts.

The Senate still has a chance to bring up an extenders bill next week, or Welfare Reauthorization which must be passed by September 30th and could carry a WOTC extension. We are interested also in the Farm Bill which has a September 30th deadline and is WOTC-germane because it reauthorizes Food Stamps and the Food Stamp Work Program and carries tax provisions.

Nonetheless, odds are Congress will leave on August 3rd without action, returning home to campaign and face constituents—perfect opportunity to get acquainted and talk WOTC with “the undecideds.”

We will continue pressing all options through September so WOTC won’t be shelved till after the election—HR. 8, Welfare Reauthorization, and the Continuing Resolution are possible vehicles.

Crises wait upon no man, so H.R. 8 could become a vehicle for compromise if the economy continues to stagger and financial crisis deepens in Europe. Fed Chairman Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Geithner have been warning Congress a European crisis will spill over to the U.S. financial system. The prospect of another financial shock is scary to a lot of congressmen—and this Congress has proven it needs a dire situation to act. What was that saying about a crisis being something not to waste?

 PAUL E. SUPLIZIO
President
WOTC Coalition

 

 

 

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Congressional Tug of War on Tax Issues: MUST Keep Pushing House and Senate for WOTC Renewal

Tuesday, July 17th, 2012

Paul Suplizio of the WOTC Coalition gave an analysis this morning of the current situation in Congress as it relates to renewal of WOTC and other tax extenders. While there is little chance of of immediate passage, there are important political milestones to be laid at this time.

Paul’s correspondence is published below with permission.  I have added bold emphasis to draw your attention to a few key assertions.

*******

From: Paul Suplizio <wotc@cox.net>
Sent: Tuesday, July 17, 2012 9:05 AM
Subject: Senator Reid/Speaker Boehner Bringing Competing Tax Plans Up Soon

July 17, 2012

The Senate will take another vote on the DISCLOSE Act today, probably its last, as the bill is being blocked by Republicans.

Senator Reid is telling senators he’ll bring up the President’s plan to extend the Bush tax cuts for taxpayers earning less than $250,000 in the near future. The bill will lay down a political marker before the election—it has small chance of passing against Republican opposition.

It’s uncertain whether Senator Reid’s bill will include the tax extenders. Even if included, they will be no closer to passage as odds are against Democrats’ mustering the required 60 votes.

Our best course is to urge senators to consider the time is ripe to bring forward a bi-partisan bill extending WOTC, and possibly other tax extenders, noting strong support on both sides of the aisle in the Senate and reiterated commitment to renewal of the tax extenders for 2012 by House Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp.

The House plans to vote soon on keeping all the Bush tax cuts in place for another year; it’s possible at least some of the tax extenders will be included, but this bill will die in the Senate due to Democratic opposition.

However, it’s important the House go on record supporting passage of WOTC—the first time in this Congress for all target groups other than veterans. Therefore, we should urge Speaker Boehner, Chairman Camp and other members of the Ways and Means Committee, and your own member of Congress, to support including WOTC in the next tax bill to be brought to the floor.

Behind the scenes, the White House is spurring negotiations for a compromise on extending the Bush tax cuts before the election, thereby removing a big part of the “fiscal cliff” and a big uncertainty for the economy. The odds are negative, but the situation’s volatile and stranger things have happened. This makes getting WOTC into the House tax bill doubly important, because the House can pass its bill while the Senate cannot pass theirs, so the House bill could be the vehicle for a compromise.

PAUL E. SUPLIZIO
President, WOTC Coalition

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Chairman Camp Discusses WOTC; Keeping Tax Credits Alive Until Comprehensive Tax Reform

Tuesday, June 26th, 2012

Sometimes, the best I can do is to simply pass good news directly on to you, readers of The WOTC Planet.

Following is a correspondence from Paul Suplizio, President of The WOTC Coalition. It is published here with his permission.

Please note, the bold headings are added by me as your editor. I added them to help parse a fairly long correspondence with much important information for you to consider.

*******

June 26, 2012

[Influential WOTC Meeting with House Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp and Other House and Senate Leaders]

Arnie Honkamp, Mike Welbes and others from tax consultant Honkamp-Kreuger, located in Iowa, came to Washington recently to get the WOTC message across with the help of their congressman, Tom Latham, who ranks 40th in seniority in the House and was singled out by the Coalition’s 50-state lobbying plan as a key Republican target.

Here is the advantage of seniority: Mr. Latham arranged a meeting with Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp, personally escorted the group to Chairman Camp’s office, and sat in on the 30-minute meeting with the chairman and three staff aides, covering all aspects of WOTC and answering many of the Chairman’s questions.

The Honkamp team also saw Speaker Boehner’s staff and met with Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, a close colleague of Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus who’s been trying to clear a tax extenders bill with Senate Majority Leader Reid and Minority Leader McConnell (recall the Leaders have already agreed in principle to pass the extenders, or at least those that aren’t earmarked for termination.)

We’ve been urging Senator Grassley to support Senator Baucus’ efforts, so the Honkamp meeting was timely reinforcement and assures Senator Grassley will remember these Iowa constituents.

We have people like Honkamp Kreuger working in all 50 states. You know who you are, and your efforts have begun to pay off. Every breakthrough to a Republican congressman or senator strengthens the cause.

 

[Statement on Tax Reform by Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp]

We are attaching a statement issued today by Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp on what he expects to accomplish on taxes before the August recess. Here we see the Chairman covering two lines of attack: first, the prospect of bringing a bill in July to extend the Bush tax cuts—an issue on which no final decision has been made by House leaders; and second, clarifying principles that will guide his approach to tax reform next year.

A tax bill of any kind from the House will be welcome—Camp’s statement shows House leaders are inching toward the idea that passing a bill extending the Bush cuts for another two years will be good politics. If so, such a bill would be a natural vehicle for WOTC and the other tax extenders.

Principles governing tax reform have been addressed by Chairman Camp before, for example, see his May 17 speech to the Federal Policy Group posted under “Press Releases” at www.waysandmeans.house.gov. There will be two individual tax brackets, 10 percent and 25 percent, the maximum corporate rate will be 25 percent, the alternative minimum tax will be eliminated, international taxation will be on a territorial rather than worldwide system, and “fast track” procedures for enacting tax reform should be provided by law.

 

[Chairman Camp's Strategy to Keep All Tax Credits & Deductions Alive until Comprehensive Tax Reform can be Considered]

Clearly, there will be no tax reform until 2013. Because of this, the Chairman recently adopted an interesting tactic to make the point that he doesn’t want any “tax loopholes” ended this year since he intends to use them to pay for tax reform next year: he invited Grover Norquist, the author of the famous “No Tax Pledge,” to speak to Ways and Means members and staff to underscore the importance of not closing tax loopholes this year because they will provide the savings needed to pay for major tax reform.

By “tax loopholes” is meant ALL corporate tax credits and deductions, not just tax extenders. Chairman Camp understands he cannot allow tax loopholes, including expired tax provisions, to terminate this year because he needs their revenue to pay for tax reform next year! Do we see a favorable omen for a WOTC extension for 2012 and 2013?

There will be many convulsions in the legislative swirl between now and the August recess. I am in touch with many of you already, but everyone is urged to contact me if you have any question about how you can be most effective, 703-587-4566. Many thanks for your efforts.

 

PAUL E. SUPLIZIO
President, WOTC Coalition

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Congress Inches Forward on WOTC and other Tax Extenders

Monday, March 26th, 2012

We received word this evening that House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp has agreed to hold hearings in April to explore the tax extenders, including WOTC. The purpose of this hearing is to consider which of the tax extenders should be renewed.

As reported today by WOTC Coalition President Paul Suplizio, the hearing will be held before the Select Revenue Measures Subcommittee, which is chaired by Congressman Pat Tiberi, Republican from Ohio.

Also, a new jobs bill was introduced by Senate Democrats today. S 2237, the Small Business Jobs and Tax Relief Act of 2012 proposes to (a) provide an income tax credit on new payroll stemming from increased wages or new jobs and (b) to extend the 100 % depreciation deduction for qualifying property. Read the Senate Fact Sheet here.

This new bill does not include WOTC, or any other tax extenders; however, according to Paul Suplizio of the WOTC Coalition,

“WOTC would be a good fit to this bill because it represents 1.1 million jobs for workers with the highest unemployment rates!”

“People may say WOTC is no different from any other extender, but the point is WOTC IS DIFFERENT and Congress recognized this when it enacted WOTC alone four years ago.

“We have employers spending money on outreach to targeted workers and not being able to claim their tax credits, and we have the historical record that total WOTC job placements are cut in half when a hiatus occurs! These points are worth making when you talk to senators about S. 2237 which likely will not come up until the Senate returns on April 16 after Easter recess.”

It may be a few weeks before the opportunity materializes.  If you support the continuance of the WOTC program, prepare now to encourage your Senators with this information.

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WOTC Call to Action – New Developments for WOTC and Tax Extenders

Friday, January 27th, 2012

There are new developments in the effort to include WOTC and other tax-extenders in the upcoming payroll tax cut bill. A Senate-House conference is currently negotiating to extend the payroll tax cut, which expires in February.

Paul Suplizio, President of the WOTC Coalition, reports that Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp is “waving off in advance an expected offer from Senator Baucus” to include tax extenders in the bill. Max Baucus is Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.

Mr. Suplizio goes on to explain, however, that while Chairman Camp’s statements should be taken seriously they do not halt the current tax-extenders discussion.

The Senate and President Obama both want the tax extenders in the bill. As a result, WOTC and other tax extenders have become a negotiating chip for Chairman Camp and the House Republicans who want to include other important but controversial provision in the bill.

For WOTC supporters, our job now is at least two-fold. (1) We must persuade Senate conferees to INSIST on including WOTC and the other extenders in the bill. And (2) we must persuade House Speaker Boehner that it will be in the House Republicans’ interest to agree on their inclusion.

Paul Suplizio said it well in a recent correspondence to members of the WOTC Coalition.

“We need to drive home to Speaker Boehner that not including the extenders is putting House Republicans on record as favoring a tax increase on businesses, farmers, communities, and workers—a tax increase they don’t need at this stage of the recovery.”

Is your fax machine and telephone working? Time is short. Time to roll.

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Senators Baucus and Reid — Tax Extenders Should Be Included In Payroll Tax Cut Deal

Tuesday, January 24th, 2012

Negotiations are on again to extend the 2011 payroll tax cut until the end of 2012.  The House-Senate Conference met on Tuesday — the first time this year — and the road to an agreement appears rocky.  Optimism is alive – but there are also some big disagreements to sort through.

Both sides of the discussion agree that a deal must be made before the end of February when the current 2-month extension expires.

Of great interest to us is the question of the other tax extenders. The House of Representative’s payroll tax cut proposal does not include the tax extenders or WOTC.  However, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus are reported to have both suggested today that the Conference should examine the expired tax provisions at this time.  (See today’s article in The Hill, scroll down to end.)

Democrats are looking to possibly tuck other provisions into a payroll-tax deal. On Tuesday, Baucus and Reid both suggested that the conference committee examine tax provisions that expired at the end of 2011 — the so-called tax extenders.

On the other hand,

The [House] Ways and Means Committee chairman [Republican Dave Camp] also told reporters after the meeting that conferees should first try to resolve core issues — such as the payroll-tax cut, unemployment benefits and the Medicare “doc fix” — and leave other issues until the end of the negotiations.

 “I think initially we need to have a pretty strict scope of conference,” Camp said. “Let’s figure out what we have been tasked with doing.”

Representative Camp is well aware of WOTC and has been the focus of significant lobbying efforts.  We are keeping our fingers crossed.  Keep your phone and fax machine ready.  The conference members need to hear from you.

More from the New York Times.

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Renewal of WOTC and Payroll Tax Cut Still Possible This Year

Monday, December 19th, 2011

If you’ve been following the news during the past few days, you might be aware that Congressional leaders are sparring over legislation to extend the existing payroll tax cut. Over the weekend, the Senate rejected the House’s proposal and responded with a proposed 2-month extension, obviously intended to buy time for further negotiations.

Neither version of the legislation included WOTC nor other sought after tax-extenders. This is not, however, the end of the game.

The limited 2-month extension is not looked upon favorably by the House Republican leadership, which is demanding a full year.  The House is scheduled to vote on the bill this evening.

According to Bloomberg,

With the House set to return to Washington [Monday], Republican leaders are studying their options, Laena Fallon, a spokeswoman for House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, a Virginia Republican, said in an e-mail.

When the House meets [Monday evening], it will either vote to amend the Senate-passed measure “so that it is responsible and in line with the needs of hard-working taxpayers and middle class families” or vote to appoint representatives to a House-Senate conference to reconcile differences between the two chambers, she said.

Got that? The House will either amend the Senate bill and return it. Or it will vote to appoint a conference with the Senate to negotiate revisions. If the House does call for a conference, the Senate leadership (aka Senator Harry Reid) could accept or reject it. But rejecting it in that case would result in a tax increase on January 1 as the payroll tax reduction expires. Not a pretty political sight.

If a conference is called, Paul Suplizio, President of the WOTC Coalition sees still another opportunity to get WOTC and other tax extenders passed this year.

“If it gets to a conference, Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp of Michigan would be one of the conferees for the House (he was floor manager for the House bill) and Finance Chairman Max Baucus of Montana a likely conferee for the Senate.”

“Chairman Camp has been the target of much of our lobbying and knows the situation of WOTC and the extenders. Senator Baucus has been a champion for including WOTC and the other extenders in the payroll bill.”

If you have any opportunity to encourage Representative Dave Camp or Senator Max Baucus, now is the time. Senator Harry Reid and his friends in the Whitehouse should also be contacted.  Senator Reid will likely require encouragement from the Whitehouse to include WOTC and other tax extenders in any negotiated resolution to this legislative conflict.

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