Latest news with #policybill
New York Times
03-07-2025
- Business
- New York Times
They Savaged Their Party's Bill. Then They Voted for It.
In the days leading up to House passage of Republicans' sweeping policy bill carrying President Trump's agenda, members of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus were unsparing in their criticism of the measure. 'That's not fiscal responsibility. It's not what we agreed to,' lawmakers in the caucus said in a statement after the Senate passed its version earlier this week with several major changes. 'Republicans,' they added, 'must do better.' Representative Chip Roy, Republican of Texas and one of the most vocal fiscal hawks in Congress, fired off a series of posts outlining what he said were the seemingly endless list of problems with the bill. 'Increases deficits and violates the terms of the budget deal,' he wrote. Representative Keith Self of Texas called it 'morally and fiscally bankrupt.' In the end, all of them voted for the bill, after an hourslong revolt that stretched from Wednesday night into early Thursday morning and ground the House floor to a halt. The legislation was unchanged, and while those who switched their positions to embrace it alluded to deals they had cut with Mr. Trump to address their concerns, it was not clear what, if any, commitments had been made or whether any would be fulfilled. Representative Andy Harris of Maryland, the chairman of the Freedom Caucus, said that he and other conservative holdouts were swayed after discussions with Mr. Trump about 'executive actions' and other steps he and his administration could take to change the way the law would be implemented. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
29-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
From gym memberships to gun silencers, Trump's tax bill is full of surprises
WASHINGTON – The Republicans' massive policy bill would do more than extend income tax cuts, add restrictions to Medicaid and food stamps and pour funding into President Donald Trump's deportation campaign. The 1,000-plus-page bill includes several lesser-known provisions that could have an impact on Americans' lives, from the court system to the gym. The bill is likely to be one of the most important pieces of legislation passed during Trump's second term. The immense pressure from the White House to pass the bill makes it a convenient vehicle for lawmakers to add in their preferred policies and increase their chances of making it into law. Still, the bill is not set in stone: The Senate will start considering the bill next week, and the measure may undergo considerable changes. Here are nine parts of the bill you might not yet know about: Republicans included a provision in the bill that would restrict judges' ability to hold people accountable for violating court orders. It comes as some judges consider contempt rulings against the Trump administration for bypassing court orders restricting their actions. More: How Trump's clash with the courts is brewing into an 'all-out war' The legislation would bar judges from enforcing contempt rulings if they didn't first order a bond, which is commonly set at zero or not ordered in cases when people are claiming the government did something unconstitutional. Democrats have argued it's a clear attempt to bypass the courts, while Republicans say it's an incentive to stop frivolous lawsuits by requiring plaintiffs to pay in. The bill would allocate $500 million to help modernize government with the help of artificial intelligence – and would prevent states from creating new regulations to shape how AI is used or developed. It also would block dozens of states from enforcing AI regulations and oversight structures they've already implemented. There is now no federal AI regulation to take the place of state policies. More: Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill' could ban states from regulating AI for a decade Tech industry leaders support the approach, warning that regulation can get in the way of innovation in a new industry. Some Republicans in the Senate, however, have raised concerns that the ban is not a good idea without a federal structure to take its place. Republicans added a provision to the bill that would get rid of a $200 registration fee for gun silencers that has existed for more than 90 years and removed a requirement for gun owners to register their silencers. More: Trump admin allows devices that let some weapons shoot as fast as machine guns "Who asked for this − was it the assassin lobby?" said Rep. Steven Horsford, D-Nevada, at a hearing on the legislation earlier in May. But Republicans argued that eliminating the fee aligns with the Second Amendment, which protects a right to bear arms, and protects gun users' hearing. The bill would qualify sports and fitness expenses as qualified medical care, which would allow people to pay for them tax-free through a Health Savings Account. People could spend up to $500 a year on gym memberships through their HSAs, or $1,000 for a married couple. More: Robert F. Kennedy now heads Trump's MAHA commission: What to know The benefit could not be used at "a private club" owned by members, or a facility that offers golf, hunting, sailing or riding facilities. The health and fitness part of the business also couldn't be "incidental to its overall function and purpose." Some people who earned a Purple Heart in the military – the decoration for service members who were wounded or killed in action – would qualify for a new income tax credit under the legislation. Purple Heart recipients who lost a portion of their Social Security disability benefits because they got a job could get a higher Earned Income Tax Credit to make up those lost Social Security benefits. The bill would create new savings accounts dubbed "Trump accounts" in which babies who are born between January 2025 and January 2029 can benefit from a one-time $1,000 payment from the federal government placed in the account. Parents would then be able to contribute up to $5,000 a year. The savings would be invested in a stock fund that would grow with the U.S. stock market. More: After 100 days, one thing is clear: The stock market is leery of Trump's tariffs The child could be able to access a portion of the money when they reach age 18 for things like education, training or buying their first house. They can use the full balance at age 30. The bill includes a change to the Pell Grant program, which provides federal aid to low-income students to attend colleges and universities. Right now, students are considered full time and qualify for the maximum amount of aid if they take 12 credits a semester. The bill would change that to 15 credits a semester, which the National College Attainment Network estimated would result in a nearly $1,500 cut in benefits for students who can't increase their course load because of work or caretaking. More: Trump orders shift on student loan management to Small Business Administration It would also end multiple existing programs for people to pay back their student loans, including a Biden-era program that tailored payment requirements to the person's income. It would be replaced with a new fixed-rate program. Migrants often move to other countries in part to send money home to their family or community abroad. The United States is the world's largest source of these transfers, known as remittances. The Republican bill would implement a 3.5% tax on those transfers, which must be paid by the person sending the money. It would include an exemption for U.S. citizens and nationals sending money abroad. The GOP proposal would charge new fees for people seeking to immigrate to the United States. Among the proposed fees: $1,000 to request asylum, $550 payments every six months for work authorization, $500 to apply for temporary protected status, $1,000 for undocumented immigrants paroled into the country, and $3,500 to sponsor unaccompanied child migrants. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: How Trump's tax bill could affect your gym membership, savings and guns
New York Times
27-06-2025
- Business
- New York Times
What Business Is Watching in Negotiations Over Big Policy Bill
Andrew here. We're focused on the scramble to salvage Republicans' major policy bill and how it could affect business and the economy. We've also got more on the New York mayoral race moves by business leaders and reporting by Danielle Kaye on the financial health of Saks Global. A.I. is also on our minds. Check out some fun excerpts from an interview with Patrick Collison, the co-founder of Stripe, conducted by my colleagues Kevin Roose and Casey Newton of The Times's 'Hard Fork' podcast. And Sarah Kessler finds out how the C.E.O. of Twilio uses A.I. ministration — are making it harder to salvage the legislation, which corporate America is closely watching, in time. Here are the latest big changes: The Senate parliamentarian, a nonpartisan official who is reviewing whether the legislation complies with the chamber's budget rules, rejected a provision that would limit states' ability to get more federal Medicaid funds. (For the wonkily minded, they relate to a 'provider tax' loophole that nearly all states use.) Critics of the bill say it could lead to the shuttering of many rural hospitals. The administration directed lawmakers to remove the so-called revenge tax, which would have raised taxes for many companies based in countries that impose a global minimum tax or additional taxes on American tech giants. Business lobbyists have argued that it would chill international investment in America. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he had reached international agreements exempting U.S. companies from the global minimum tax. The Senate parliamentarian also asked lawmakers to rework a 10-year moratorium on the enforcement of state laws regulating artificial intelligence, according to Senator Maria Cantwell, Democrat of Washington and the ranking member of the Senate Commerce Committee. Here's a running list of other provisions the parliamentarian has rejected. Still unaddressed: the tax changes at the core of the legislation. Trump is turning up the heat on lawmakers. The White House held an event on Thursday to rally support for the legislation, at which the president praised the 'hundreds of things' to like about the bill. Trump has also been calling up individual senators, according to Punchbowl News. Whether or when that happens is unclear, however. Republican leaders are seeking to salvage many of the provisions with wording tweaks. (They've already done so with proposed cuts in federal funding for food assistance programs.) But Senator John Thune, the majority leader, has said that the chamber won't override the parliamentarian's rulings. Meanwhile, lawmakers still disagree on key provisions like caps on deductions for state and local taxes. And it's unclear whether House Republicans will approve whatever the Senate decides on. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
CNN
26-06-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Full Court Press - Inside Politics with Dana Bash and Manu Raju - Podcast on CNN Podcasts
CNN Inside Politics 43 mins The Trump Administration is laser focused on telling Americans that the US strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities were an unequivocal success, even as questions remain about whether the regime's capabilities were actually eliminated. Plus: Republicans are running out of time to get their massive policy bill over the finish line by July 4th. So today the president is bring food delivery drivers and border agents to the White House to pressure GOP lawmakers still hesitant to support it. And: Democrats are racing to understand NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani's rise from obscurity and whether he will help or hurt their efforts to win back power next year.
