House Passes Cap-and-Trade Bill With EITC Expansion
By Christine Grimaldi, Heather M. Rothman, and Dean Scott
Publication date: 06/29/2009
House lawmakers June 26 voted 219-212 to pass cap-and-trade climate change legislation (H.R. 2454) that includes a provision expanding the earned income tax credit amount for childless workers.
The vote for passage included 211 Democrats and eight Republicans. Forty-four Democrats joined 168 Republicans in voting against the bill.
The House passage sends the legislation to the Senate, where its fate is uncertain. Senate leadership has decided to focus first on health care.
“The House has taken a courageous step toward a safer and cleaner energy future that will create good jobs, reduce pollution and decrease our dependence on foreign and unsustainable sources of energy,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said in a statement following the vote.
“Working with the president and his team,” he added, “I am hopeful that the Senate will be able to debate and pass bipartisan and comprehensive clean energy and climate legislation this fall.”
Doggett Votes Against Rule, for Bill
In an attempt to gather the requisite 218 votes for passage, Democrats postponed for hours floor consideration of the bill.
Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas), a member of the House Ways and Means Committee, decided to vote for the bill as debate neared an end.
Earlier in the day, Doggett stood among 30 House Democrats that cast nays in the close 217-205 floor vote on the rule (H. Res. 587) allowing the legislation on the floor. Doggett said it was only the second time in his entire career he had voted against a Democratic rule.
At the time, Doggett—who said he met privately with President Obama last evening—was apparently unconvinced by the president to support the bill.
“I want him [Obama] to have the power to move forward internationally and reverse what's happened the last eight years, I just think this is an incredibly weak bill to do it with. It goes in the wrong direction,” Doggett said.
Republican Opposition
Only one Ways and Means Republican—Rep. Dave Reichert (Wash.)—voted in favor of passage.
Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Texas), the ranking member on Ways and Means's Trade Subcommittee, said after the vote on the rule that significant trade provisions were inserted into the bill at the last minute “without any bipartisan discussion” after the committee waived its jurisdiction.
“We are very upset,” he said. “One, they were written so poorly that they are going to force China and India away from the table and they're going to be almost impossible to defend with a challenge. So, a little input could have helped.”
House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) criticized the earned income tax credit during floor debate.
“Why does this bill neglect middle-class families in America?” he asked, noting that the provision only helps people with no children who qualify for the EITC.
Updated EITC Expansion Score
The legislation would expand the EITC by increasing the credit percentage and phase-out percentage for individuals with no children from 7.65 percent to 15.3 percent, and by increasing the beginning phase-out amount from $5,280 to $13,590.
It also would eliminate a refundable energy tax credit established for low-income taxpayers, while rerouting those benefits through an energy refund program electronic benefit transfer system.
The complete text of this article can be found in the BNA Daily Tax Report, June 29, 2009. For comprehensive coverage of taxation, pension, budget, and accounting issues, sign up for a free trial or subscribe to the BNA Daily Tax Report today. Learn more »
© 2009, The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc.
House Passes Cap-and-Trade Bill With EITC Expansion
By Christine Grimaldi, Heather M. Rothman, and Dean Scott
Publication date: 06/29/2009
House lawmakers June 26 voted 219-212 to pass cap-and-trade climate change legislation (H.R. 2454) that includes a provision expanding the earned income tax credit amount for childless workers.
The vote for passage included 211 Democrats and eight Republicans. Forty-four Democrats joined 168 Republicans in voting against the bill.
The House passage sends the legislation to the Senate, where its fate is uncertain. Senate leadership has decided to focus first on health care.
“The House has taken a courageous step toward a safer and cleaner energy future that will create good jobs, reduce pollution and decrease our dependence on foreign and unsustainable sources of energy,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said in a statement following the vote.
“Working with the president and his team,” he added, “I am hopeful that the Senate will be able to debate and pass bipartisan and comprehensive clean energy and climate legislation this fall.”
Doggett Votes Against Rule, for Bill
In an attempt to gather the requisite 218 votes for passage, Democrats postponed for hours floor consideration of the bill.
Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas), a member of the House Ways and Means Committee, decided to vote for the bill as debate neared an end.
Earlier in the day, Doggett stood among 30 House Democrats that cast nays in the close 217-205 floor vote on the rule (H. Res. 587) allowing the legislation on the floor. Doggett said it was only the second time in his entire career he had voted against a Democratic rule.
At the time, Doggett—who said he met privately with President Obama last evening—was apparently unconvinced by the president to support the bill.
“I want him [Obama] to have the power to move forward internationally and reverse what's happened the last eight years, I just think this is an incredibly weak bill to do it with. It goes in the wrong direction,” Doggett said.
Republican Opposition
Only one Ways and Means Republican—Rep. Dave Reichert (Wash.)—voted in favor of passage.
Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Texas), the ranking member on Ways and Means's Trade Subcommittee, said after the vote on the rule that significant trade provisions were inserted into the bill at the last minute “without any bipartisan discussion” after the committee waived its jurisdiction.
“We are very upset,” he said. “One, they were written so poorly that they are going to force China and India away from the table and they're going to be almost impossible to defend with a challenge. So, a little input could have helped.”
House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) criticized the earned income tax credit during floor debate.
“Why does this bill neglect middle-class families in America?” he asked, noting that the provision only helps people with no children who qualify for the EITC.
Updated EITC Expansion Score
The legislation would expand the EITC by increasing the credit percentage and phase-out percentage for individuals with no children from 7.65 percent to 15.3 percent, and by increasing the beginning phase-out amount from $5,280 to $13,590.
It also would eliminate a refundable energy tax credit established for low-income taxpayers, while rerouting those benefits through an energy refund program electronic benefit transfer system.
The complete text of this article can be found in the BNA Daily Tax Report, June 29, 2009. For comprehensive coverage of taxation, pension, budget, and accounting issues, sign up for a free trial or subscribe to the BNA Daily Tax Report today. Learn more »
© 2009, The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc.
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