The Illinois congressional delegation voted along party lines yesterday on the tax overhaul legislation in both the House and Senate.
On the U.S. House floor, 13th District Republican Rodney Davis pointed the finger at Democrats in the Senate for allowing tax cuts for low- and middle-income individuals to expire in 2025.
"Because many of the same people using this as a talking point against this bill are the reason they sunset," he said. "If we could get 60 votes in the Senate, requiring just a few of my friends on the other side of the aisle to work with us, we could make this tax cut for middle-class families permanent right now."
Democrats counter that Republicans could have chosen to prioritize the individual tax cuts over those for corporations. In a news release, Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., said that the “wealthiest people in this country can get tax breaks they don’t need at taxpayer expense.”
Davis says he plans to counter that argument with new legislation to make the individual tax cuts permanent as well.
“I’m not sure there’s anyone who truly believes that a future Congress would let them expire, given the fact that we’ve extended the Bush tax cuts in the past,” he said. “Nonetheless, I’m introducing this bill to ensure these tax cuts will be in place for middle class families this year and make sure they’re here to stay.”
The non-partisan Tax Policy Center says the average household making between $50,000 and $75,000 per year will get a tax cut of 1.6 percent in 2018, while the average household making at least $1 million will get a tax cut of 3.3 percent.