[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 208 (Wednesday, December 20, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1741-E1742]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 1, TAX CUTS AND JOBS ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                            HON. KEVIN BRADY

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 19, 2017

  Mr. BRADY of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record letters from 
the Real Estate Roundtable, National Association of Home Builders, 
Financial Services Roundtable, American Bankers Association, RATE 
Coalition, and the National Milk Producers Federation:
                                           Real Estate Roundtable.

       Tax Bill Will Spur Economic Growth: Real Estate Roundtable

       Washington, DC.--Real Estate Roundtable President and Chief 
     Executive Officer Jeffrey DeBoer today commended 
     congressional policymakers on reconciling differences between 
     the Senate and House versions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act 
     (H.R. 1)--historic tax legislation that faces a final vote in 
     both chambers next week. DeBoer stated: ``Today's agreement 
     by Senate and House leaders on the final details of the Tax 
     Cuts and Jobs Act is a significant effort to encourage 
     capital formation and investment in all types of businesses. 
     New investment incentives in this bill should spur economic 
     growth and boost job creation throughout the United States. 
     We applaud the dedicated efforts of congressional lawmakers 
     and Administration officials who brought this legislation to 
     fruition.
       In addition to reducing the tax rate for American 
     corporations to make them more globally competitive, the 
     legislation also encourages capital formation and investment 
     by ushering in a new tax regime focused on businesses 
     conducted in pass-through format such as partnerships and 
     Subchapter S corporations. These pass-through entities are 
     the backbone of the American economy, representing over 60 
     percent of all business income and creating more than 60 
     percent of all jobs in America over the past 25 years.''
       Mr. DeBoer added:
       ``We anticipate that many provisions in the bill, including 
     the pass-through tax regime, will require the immediate focus 
     and attention of the Treasury Department to draft 
     interpretative regulations. This process will be critical in 
     maintaining needed guardrails to prevent abuse, but also to 
     make certain the new rules function as efficiently as 
     possible and result in robust economic activity.
       The Act also ensures that commercial real estate 
     development and ownership continues to be taxed on an 
     economic basis, thereby avoiding significant market 
     distortions that could harm local communities and lender 
     portfolios.''
                                  ____



                                       National Association of

                                                    Home Builders.


                              Letter No. 1

                      NAHB Supports Final Tax Bill

       Washington,Dec. 16.--Granger MacDonald, chairman of the 
     National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home 
     builder and developer from Kerrville, Texas, issued the 
     following statement regarding the final House-Senate 
     conference report on tax reform legislation:
       ``NAHB fully supports the final conference report on tax 
     reform legislation and commends the work of House-Senate 
     conferees. This comprehensive overhaul of the nation's tax 
     code will help middle-class families, maintain the nation's 
     commitment to affordable housing and ensure that small 
     businesses are treated fairly relative to large corporations. 
     Lower tax rates and a fair tax code will spur economic growth 
     and increase competitiveness, and that is good for housing. 
     We urge the House and Senate to move quickly to pass this 
     legislation.''


                              Letter No. 2

       On behalf of the approximately 140,000 members of the 
     National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), I am writing to 
     express strong support for the conference report to H.R. 1, 
     the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. NAHB commends the work of the 
     House and Senate conferees to deliver a final bill that will 
     spur greater economic growth. Due to the importance of this 
     legislation to our economy, NAHB has designated support of 
     H.R. 1 as a key vote.
       This comprehensive overhaul of the nation's tax code 
     provides tax relief to middleclass families, maintains the 
     nation's commitment to affordable housing, and ensures that 
     small businesses are treated fairly relative to large 
     corporations. Lower tax rates and a fairer tax code will spur 
     economic growth and increase competitiveness, and that is 
     good for housing. Housing not only equals jobs, but jobs mean 
     more demand for housing.
       By passing this bill, housing can be a key engine for the 
     job growth we all seek. After all, the housing sector--
     representing roughly one-sixth of the U.S. economy--is 
     operating at only two-thirds of its potential capacity. There 
     is tremendous potential in unlocking and unleashing housing 
     to lead the country to greater economic growth.
       Again, NAHB has designated passage of H.R. 1 as a key vote, 
     and we urge the House and Senate to move quickly to pass this 
     legislation. Thank you for considering our views.
                                  ____

                                    Financial Services Roundtable.

        FSR Urges Congress To Pass Conference Tax Reform Package

       Washington, December 15, 2017.--The Financial Services 
     Roundtable (FSR) today came out in support of the conference 
     committee report on tax reform and urged Congress to quickly 
     pass its tax reform bill to help boost economic opportunity 
     for all Americans. ``Tax reform will help deliver expanded 
     opportunity for individuals and American businesses of all 
     sizes,'' said FSR CEO Tim Pawlenty. ``Congress should quickly 
     move tax reform over the finish line and enable America to go 
     on economic offense.'' FSR believes the outcome of the 
     conference committee report will help drive more jobs and 
     long-term investment that benefits American workers and their 
     families. With a near 35% rate, the U.S. has one of the 
     highest corporate tax rates in the industrialized world. 
     These reforms will finally put our country on a more 
     competitive footing for business and investment from around 
     the globe.
                                  ____

                                     American Bankers Association.

                ABA Statement on Tax Reform Legislation

                (By Rob Nichols, ABA president and CEO)

       ``We congratulate the House and Senate conference committee 
     for reaching a final agreement on comprehensive tax reform. 
     Committee members have moved the nation another step closer 
     to the first major overhaul of the tax code in more than 
     three decades.
       ``ABA believes the significant reforms included in this 
     legislation will help grow the economy and create jobs. We 
     particularly applaud the provisions that significantly lower 
     tax rates for all types of businesses beginning in 2018. 
     Banks currently have one of the highest effective tax rates 
     of any industry, and these important changes will allow our 
     members to better serve their customers and the broader 
     economy.
       ``While there is much to like in the bill, lawmakers missed 
     an opportunity to reform the outdated, unfair and 
     unreasonable tax advantages enjoyed by credit unions and the 
     Farm Credit System. Congress should treat businesses 
     providing the same services the same way, and that is not 
     happening today. We will continue to argue for a level 
     playing field until Congress ends this inequity.
       ``We still believe this legislation as a whole will benefit 
     our members, their customers, and the country. As a result, 
     ABA supports the conference report and encourages members of 
     the House and Senate, and ultimately President Trump, to 
     enact it into law as soon as possible.''
       The American Bankers Association is the voice of the 
     nation's $17 trillion banking industry, which is composed of 
     small, midsize, regional and large banks that together employ 
     more than 2 million people, safeguard $13 trillion in 
     deposits and extend more than $9 trillion in loans.
                                  ____

                                                   RATE Coalition.

RATE Coalition Statement on the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Conference Report

       The Reforming America's Taxes Equitably (RATE) Coalition--
     whose affiliated companies represent over 30 million 
     employees in all 50 states--released the following statement 
     on the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Conference Report:
       ``We are proud of the diligence with which this 
     Administration and this Congress have worked to craft 
     historic tax reform. We are equally proud to fully support 
     the end result of those efforts: The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act 
     Conference Report. A critical fix to our broken tax system--
     one that punishes job-creating businesses of all sizes with 
     the highest

[[Page E1742]]

     corporate rate in the industrialized world--the TCJA 
     Conference Report would help our economy grasp the growth 
     that's well within its reach. Provisions similar to those 
     included in this Conference Report have been projected to 
     boost GDP, create new jobs, lift after-tax income for middle-
     class families, and encourage greater investment in our 
     country. The RATE Coalition strongly urges Senators and 
     Representatives to deliver those wins for American workers by 
     sending this legislation to President Trump's desk for 
     signature as swiftly as possible.''
                                  ____



                                                 National Milk

                                             Producers Federation.

 NMPF Statement on Tax Reform Legislation From Jim Mulhern, President 
                             and CEO, NMPF

       Arlington, VA--``National Milk has worked closely with 
     House and Senate members on the tax reform conference package 
     to achieve a positive outcome for dairy farmers and their 
     cooperatives, and we're pleased that conferees have completed 
     work on a package that should provide important relief. The 
     final compromise to address the loss of the Section 199 
     deduction will help protect farmer-owned businesses from a 
     major tax increase at a time when America's farm sector is 
     struggling with low commodity prices and reduced incomes.
       ``America's dairy farmers, who overwhelmingly rely on 
     cooperatives to market their milk, appreciate the determined 
     efforts by Sens. John Hoeven (R-ND) and John Thune (R-SD), as 
     well as multiple House members, including Agriculture 
     Committee Chairman Mike Conaway (R-TX), to seek a fair and 
     reasonable solution to this challenge. Their efforts will 
     help prevent a higher tax bill for cooperatives and avert the 
     loss of economic activity in rural communities that these 
     businesses help generate. We're also grateful for the 
     numerous senators on both sides of the aisle who elevated 
     this issue during the debate.
       ``At issue is the loss of the benefit that both farmers and 
     cooperative businesses enjoy from the Section 199 deduction, 
     also known as the Domestic Production Activities Deduction 
     (DPAD). This important provision of the tax code applies to 
     proceeds from agricultural products marketed through 
     cooperatives, making the Section 199 an important means of 
     reducing taxation for farmers and cooperatives alike. 
     Cooperatives pass the vast majority of the benefit--nearly $2 
     billion nationwide--directly to their farmer owners, then 
     reinvest the remainder in infrastructure improvements for the 
     marketing and processing of food products.
       ``The final tax package released on Friday repeals the 
     DPAD, but the legislation allows cooperative members to claim 
     a new 20-percent deduction on payments from a farmer 
     cooperative. Cooperatives would also be able to claim the 20-
     percent deduction on gross income less payments to patrons, 
     limited to the greater of 50 percent of wages or 25 percent 
     of wages plus 2.5 percent of the cooperative's investment in 
     property. This favorable treatment for gross income will help 
     minimize any potential increase in the tax burden on farmer-
     owned cooperatives.
       ``NMPF believes that this provision, plus components of the 
     bill that increase exemption levels from the federal estate 
     tax, enhance depreciation and expensing opportunities for 
     producers, and preserve farmers' ability to deduct interest 
     expenses, should help farmers and cooperatives alike. The fix 
     offered by Sens. Hoeven and Thune recognizes that farmer 
     cooperatives play an indispensable role in our nation's 
     economy and need to be treated fairly in the final tax 
     legislation.''

                          ____________________