WASHINGTON — The sky-high tax-cut provisions under consideration by Congress in the wake of the GOP tax bill would shift the emphasis of deficit-financed tax relief toward the wealthiest 1 percent of households while leaving federal revenue among the lowest of U.S. governments over the next decade, according to a new projection by Congress’ nonpartisan fiscal analyst.
The measure, which remains unfinished at the end of last week, would reduce the overall tax burden of wealthier households who pay federal income taxes. At the same time, it would raise taxes on households in the lowest half of income distribution by roughly 10 percent in 2019, the Tax Policy Center calculated.
The new estimate, obtained by The Washington Post, closely reflects the center’s approach to determining the scale of tax increases in the tax bill.
To offset some of the lost tax revenue, the plan would cut the corporate tax rate to 20 percent, eliminate some deductions, and boost the child tax credit. Such measures would still result in slight cuts for most Americans after accounting for all incentives in the legislation, according to the center’s analysis.
The final package faces a test vote in the Senate Tuesday. Top Senate Republican leaders were still scrambling on Monday to fill remaining gaps in their bill. They appeared reluctant to unveil the full tax outline, which they planned to unveil on Tuesday morning, until senators set a vote.