Schumer plans vote on stalled tax extender bill in Senate

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-New York, announced plans Monday night to bring up a vote on the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act later this week on Thursday.

The $78 billion bill has been stalled in the Senate since it passed the House at the end of January by a wide bipartisan margin of 357-70, with 188 Democrats and 169 Republicans voting in favor of it. However, the bill has since attracted opposition from Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee and elsewhere in the chamber. The bill is not expected to pass in the Senate, but it may still attract some Republican support. The timing just before a Senate recess and in the heat of an election campaign suggests it's intended to put Republicans on record for their votes. 

The bill would revive a number of tax breaks, including a scaled back version of the enhanced Child Tax Credit, the ability to fully deduct research and development expenses in the first year, 100% bonus depreciation, disaster tax relief, improvements in the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, interest expensing and a tax agreement with Taiwan. It would increase the threshold for reporting income earned by an independent contractor from $600 to $1,000, with an adjustment to the increased amount for inflation. It would also increase penalties for aiding and abetting the understatement of tax liability with respect to the Employee Retention Tax Credit.

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"Tonight, I am very happy to announce that I have just filed cloture on the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act, a bill to expand the Child Tax Credit, expand the Affordable Housing Tax Credit, help small businesses with the R&D credit, and lift half a million kids out of poverty," Schumer said in a floor statement Monday night. "For the information of senators, the step I take tonight sets up a cloture vote on Thursday. It's time to get this bill done right away. This bipartisan bill passed the House overwhelmingly, 357-70, and we hope this week, Senate Republicans will join us."

However, Schumer made it clear that Democrats plan to capitalize on Republicans' expected votes against the bill. "When we vote, the American people will see for themselves who in fact favors expanding the Child Tax Credit and taking so many kids out of poverty, and who opposes it," he said. "The American people will see who supports expanding affordable housing and who doesn't. And the American people will see who stands up for small business, and who stands against them, as they have so requested this important R&D credit. I urge my Republican colleagues not to stand in the way of helping parents and small businesses and families keep a roof over their heads when it's time to vote on Thursday."

Republicans have been asking for an open amendment process to offer an opportunity to amend provisions in the bill such as the Child Tax Credit. They decried the rush to a vote just ahead of the monthlong August recess. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, told The Hill, "Makes me wonder how sincere of an effort could this be if … we're going to run out of time to give a bill adequate consideration," he said. "I don't expect it to go anywhere."