House takes up tax package

Wednesday, September 24, 2008 |
WASHINGTON (AP) — Major tax legislation that would save 20 million people from the clutches of the alternative minimum tax and renew dozens of popular tax breaks for businesses and individuals is being taken up in the House, where its fate is uncertain.
The tax package passed the Senate on Tuesday on a 93-2 vote, but faces obstacles in the House, where fiscally conservative Democrats object to tax relief that is not paid for with an increase in revenues elsewhere.
The House plans to offer a competing version as early as today that raises more revenue by closing loopholes used by hedge fund managers and corporations doing business overseas. That could complicate getting a bill to the president before Congress adjourns for the year.
The Senate-passed bill provides more than $17 billion in renewable energy tax incentives that the solar and wind industries say are crucial if they are to become significant sources of energy in the near future. It renews the research and development tax credit, at a cost of $19 billion, that businesses have come to rely on.
It gives a one-year reprieve, at a cost of $64 billion, to more than 20 million taxpayers who would get hit by the AMT, which is supposed to only affect the very rich. The bill also gives tax breaks to natural disaster victims and ensures mental health parity in health insurance benefits.
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