Tax reform

Shortly before passing a far-reaching but unpopular bill on a party line vote, the Speaker of the House assured critics that people would like it once they felt its benefits.

President Donald Trump declared that Republicans had passed the largest tax cut in U.S. history and said corporations would no longer relocate their headquarters overseas after the House sent the legislation to his desk on Wednesday.

The tax reform legislation that Congress approved Wednesday has a number of complexities that could prove problematic for tax professionals and their clients.

American Institute of CPAs president and CEO Barry Melancon issued a statement Wednesday following passage by Congress of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expressing disappointment that the bill doesn’t give CPA firms the same favorable tax treatment provided to other pass-through entities.

House Republicans passed the most extensive rewrite of the U.S. tax code in more than 30 years—hours after the Senate passed the legislation—handing President Donald Trump his first major legislative victory.

A pivotal moment in the Republican party’s drive for tax overhaul legislation came in September, when two GOP senators agreed that tax cuts could add $1.5 trillion to deficits over 10 years, said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

If you’re confused by how the Republican tax bill will affect you, you’re not alone.

The impact of the biggest overhaul of the U.S. tax code in three decades will spread far and wide starting next year, highlighted by a cut in the corporate rate to 21 percent from 35 percent, fully allowable deductions for capital expenses and lower levies on repatriating overseas profits.

White House economic adviser Gary Cohn said he was dumbfounded by the unpopularity of the Republican tax bill, and claimed that President Donald Trump fought unsuccessfully to strip a provision that mostly benefits wealthy investors.

Republicans are on the brink of passing the most extensive rewrite of the U.S. tax code in more than 30 years—but it’s not yet clear when President Donald Trump will actually sign the bill.