By Joe Dowley Joe Dowley served as Chief Counsel of the Committee on Ways & Means, U.S. House of Representatives when Congress last undertook fundamental tax reform. In the face of many doubters, House Committee on Ways & Means Chairman Dave Camp announced this month that he was establishing a series of subject matter, Member-level… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Budget
Subscribe to Budget RSS FeedTax Reform Moving Ahead Even As Congress Grapples with Sequestration
Posted in Budget, Congress, Tax PolicyBy Joe Dowley Joe Dowley served as Chief Counsel of the Committee on Ways & Means, U.S. House of Representatives when Congress last undertook fundamental tax reform. Skeptics are questioning whether comprehensive tax reform can happen in 2013 given the concern that Congress may use revenues needed for tax reform to avoid the so-called “sequester” cuts… Continue Reading
Chairman Camp, Ways and Means: Getting Serious About Tax Reform?
Posted in Budget, Congress, Tax PolicyBy Joe Dowley Joe Dowley served as Chief Counsel of the Committee on Ways & Means, U.S. House of Representatives when Congress last undertook fundamental tax reform. Yesterday (2/13), Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) of the Ways & Means Committee announced the creation of eleven “bipartisan working groups” to “sort out” the issues the members will… Continue Reading
Tax Reform in 2013? Maybe, Maybe Not
Posted in Budget, Congress, Legislation (Federal), Tax PolicyBy Joe Dowley Joe Dowley served as Chief Counsel of the Committee on Ways & Means, U.S. House of Representatives when Congress last undertook fundamental tax reform. Here are a few of the reasons why Congress may undertake tax reform in 2013, together with why not rebuttals: To avoid the March 1st sequester ($100.9 billion… Continue Reading
Prospects for Tax Reform are Improving
Posted in Budget, Congress, Legislation (Federal), Tax PolicyBy Joe Dowley Joe Dowley served as Chief Counsel of the Committee on Ways & Means, U.S. House of Representatives when Congress last undertook fundamental tax reform. One hesitates to predict these days what the new Congress might do in 2013-14. The past few years will not be marked by historians as a high water… Continue Reading
After ATRA: What’s in Store for Taxes?
Posted in Budget, Congress, Legislation (Federal), Tax PolicyUpdated: January 18, 3:20 pm By Joe Dowley Joe Dowley served as Chief Counsel of the Committee on Ways & Means, U.S. House of Representative when Congress last undertook fundamental tax reform. Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), Chairman of the House Budget Committee, was quoted by BNA on Jan. 17th indicating that tax reform will go… Continue Reading
2012 Congressional Lame Duck Session: Webinar Summary and Recording
Posted in 2012 Elections, Appropriations, Budget, Congress, Legislation (Federal), National Security & Defense, Tax PolicyBy Joe Dowley A momentous session of Congress looms ahead… We are carefully watching developments in advance of the elections to gauge likely directions once voters have spoken. There won’t be much time—or open deliberation—once the Lame Duck begins. Most decisions, if there are any, will come as a result of closed door meetings between Congressional leaders… Continue Reading
2012 Congressional Lame Duck Session: Webinar Notice
Posted in 2012 Elections, Budget, Congress, Legislation (Federal), National Security & Defense, Tax PolicyBy Joe Dowley With the 2012 Congressional lame duck session fast approaching, there are a number of important issues for which public and private sector actors should be prepared. To help look more deeply into these topics, including a budget overview, sequestration, defense authorization legislation, taxes, and the implications of the Presidential and Senate elections, we… Continue Reading
The Northern Tiger: What the U.S. Could Learn From Canada
Posted in Budget, Canada-U.S. Relations, Cross-border Investment, Energy Policy, Infrastructure, TransportationBy Colin Robertson Today, the Aspen Institute‘s program on Manufacturing and Society in the 21st Century is releasing a timely new study focusing on how Canada has successfully addressed fiscal and competitiveness problems similar to those the U.S. is currently facing. With support from the Canadian Council of Chief Executives (CCCE) and authored by Jeremy Leonard, the report describes how… Continue Reading
FY 2012 Requests for TIFIA Loans Outpace Amount Available 12-to-1
Posted in Budget, TransportationBy Mike Wojnar The TIFIA Joint Program Office at the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) has announced that 26 potential applicants have submitted letters of interest requesting more than $13 billion in TIFIA loans for Fiscal Year 2012. With around $120 million available for TIFIA subsidies, USDOT can theoretically support about $1 billion in TIFIA loans. While this… Continue Reading
New Revenues Make Up Half of Obama Budget Savings
Posted in Budget, Tax PolicyBy Joe Dowley Although key details have yet to emerge on corporate tax proposals, the President’s just-released budget calls for half of its $3 trillion in cuts over ten years to come from revenues. Nearly two-thirds of this $1.5 trillion would come as a result of permitting the Bush-era (2001 and 2003) tax cuts for families… Continue Reading
President Obama Unveils New Small Business “Start-up” Proposals
Posted in Budget, Legislation (Federal), Tax PolicyBy Joe Dowley The Administration unveiled new proposals yesterday aimed at encouraging small business “start-ups” that build upon earlier-passed temporary tax breaks. The proposals are an effort to reach out to the part of the business sector which is responsible for “most new jobs” in the economy, according to a White House press release. The… Continue Reading
U.S. Debt Ceiling: Is Another Increase Inevitable?
Posted in Budget, Legislation (Federal), Tax PolicyBy Jim Schweiter On Thursday, January 12, the Obama Administration notified Congress that the United States is within $100 billion of reaching the federal debt ceiling, triggering a process that will result in the raising of the debt ceiling by an additional $1.2 trillion. It’s important to understand the federal debt limit and the process… Continue Reading
2012 Crystal Ball: Can This Congress Accomplish Anything Regarding the Nation’s Debt Crisis?
Posted in 2012 Elections, Budget, Legislation (Federal), Tax PolicyBy Joe Dowley Some might argue that it already has. It has put in place a budgetary “sword of Damocles” – a scheduled January 2013, 10-year “sequestration” – $1.2 trillion in automatic spending cuts largely to defense and other popular discretionary spending. It was passed by this Congress and its existence will dominate all other legislative activities… Continue Reading
Elections, Money Drive Agendas in 2012 State Legislatures
Posted in 2012 Elections, Budget, Legislatures (State)By Mark Burkhalter While serving in the leadership of the Georgia Legislature, election years and money often drove policy or the lack thereof in state legislatures across America. 2012 will likely be no different. Election year state legislative sessions can typically result in “policy paralysis.” Translation, fewer major initiatives are undertaken from fear of losing… Continue Reading