Month: November 2017

This Week on the Hill: Tax Reform Faces Crucial Test on Senate Floor

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Last week’s much-needed break comes ahead of an anticipated legislative frenzy for the remainder of the calendar year. Republicans are racing to finish their tax reform push and the legislative calendar will be complicated by the expiration of government funding on Dec. 8. Given that Democratic votes will be needed for any funding package, expect for the minority party to seek concessions on issues such as a possible bipartisan healthcare fix and the protection of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Currently, Congress is slated to be in session only 12 days for the remainder of 2017, but that could change if Congressional leaders want more time to finish their legislative projects.

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Health Policy Report

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The Week in Review

Both chambers of Congress were in recess for the Thanksgiving holiday. The most notable development in the absence of floor action was the formal release of legislative text detailing the Senate tax reform plan, which will likely appear on the Senate floor this week.

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In RealClearPolicy: TRP’s Shea McCarthy Discusses the Implications of Tax Reform for Healthcare

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Today, RealClearPolicy published an article authored by Thorn Run's Shea McCarthy that outlines the implications of implications of the various tax reform bills on the nation's healthcare system. With the Senate eyeing a vote on its version of a tax overhaul bill after thanksgiving, McCarthy noted that stakeholders should take the implications of the GOP's once-in-a-generation tax reform effort seriously. "Of particular note in this context is the repeal of the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate, which the Senate has proposed as an offset, providing over $300 billion in savings due to millions fewer individuals receiving subsidized health insurance," wrote McCarthy.  "Additionally, a rarely discussed provision in congressional PAYGO rules could require over $135 billion in annual cuts to mandatory spending, targeting health-care programs including Medicare and ACA funding." McCarthy also discussed the political complexities of passing the bipartisan Alexander-Murray ACA stabilization deal, noting that the Senate Majority reached tentative agreement to hold a separate vote on the health-care deal negotiated by Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Patty Murray (R-WA) after the Senate repeals the individual mandate in its tax reform bill.

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Financial Services Report

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Our Take

It is interesting to view the recent votes on Tax Reform through the historical prism of the last time we had comprehensive tax reform in 1986.   While a review of all the roll call votes show some party line votes, it seems like most of the votes were more strong bipartisan totals.   While we have shared our thoughts about the wisdom of using a “once in a generation opportunity” to pass temporary changes to the code privately with many of you, it seems telling that this tax effort is a reflection of the ideological “silo-ing” that continues to advance in our country.  

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Health Policy Report

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The Week in Review

Tax reform headlines dominated the week as both chambers took significant steps to advancing tax reform legislation. On Thursday, the Senate Finance Committee advanced the upper chamber’s legislation on a party-line vote after a contentious four-day markup.  That move came on the heels of the House approving its version of tax reform legislation on the chamber floor despite 13 Republican defections over the inclusion of a repeal of the state and local tax (SALT) deduction. Both versions include important provisions for the healthcare industry, which are broken down in detail below.

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This Week on the Hill: Tax Reform Push Continues in Both Chambers; House Votes on NDAA Conference Report, Flood Insurance Deal Tomorrow

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The Republican race to finish tax reform legislation before the end of the calendar year enters another critical week as the House takes up its legislation (H.R. 1) on the chamber floor and the Senate Finance Committee begins a markup of the upper chamber’s version of the package. While some defections are likely inevitable, House Republican leadership has voiced confidence that they will have the votes to advance the package before the end of the week and they intend to make few changes to the package passed out of committee last week. The House Rules Committee has teed up a hearing for the bill on Wednesday, likely setting up an up-or-down vote on Thursday.

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Health Policy Report

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The Week in Review

A big political week both inside and out of Washington saw victories for both parties as Democrats notched electoral wins and Republicans moved a step closer to passing tax reform legislation.

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Financial Services Report

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Looking Ahead

Near Term

  • The Tax bill comes to the full House on Thursday (at Rules on Wednesday)
  • Senate Finance starts its mark-up of the tax reform bill on Monday.
  • The House Rules Committee is schedule d to meet on Monday to try again at bringing the Flood Insurance bill to the Floor.
  • The House Financial Services Committee will mark-up over 20 bills starting on Tuesday.
  • DOL Secretary Acosta will be before the House Ed and Workforce Committee on Wednesday.

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Today on the Hill: Democrats Claim Victory in Off-Year Elections; House to Consider Hydropower Policy Bill

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Democrats are celebrating victories this morning in yesterday’s elections in New Jersey and Virginia, as well as other local races across the country. In the most high-profile race, Ralph Northam defeated Ed Gillespie for the Virginia governorship by a nine-point margin, four points more than Hillary Clinton’s victory in the state last year. That fact has some political analysts viewing last night’s results as an early indicator for next year’s midterm elections, particularly as exit polls suggest that voters viewed the Virginia and New Jersey races as a referendum on President Trump. The next election to watch is in Alabama, where Democrat Doug Jones and Republican Roy Moore are vying for the Senate seat vacated by Jeff Sessions when he became Attorney General earlier this year. Election day for that race will be on Dec. 12.

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Today on the Hill: Election Day in NJ, VA; Brady Releases Tax Substitute Amendment

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Political attention will shift away from Washington and towards Virginia and New Jersey today as those states’ voters head to the polls for a gubernatorial election. The Virginia race in particular is anticipated to be a close contest between current Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam and former Republican National Committee (RNC) Chair Ed Gillespie. Political observers will be viewing the results as a barometer on the electorate following President Trump’s surprising win a year ago, with an eye towards next year’s national midterm elections.

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