Major areas of importance to counties are under discussion as Congress continues deliberations on tax reform, including the deductibility of state and local taxes and the tax-exempt status of private activity bonds and advance refunding bonds. The House has passed HR 1, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, and the Senate Finance Committee completed its markup of the Senate’s version on November 16, with passage by the full Senate possible by the end of the month.
The two bills have significant differences, notably in their treatment of the state and local tax deduction. The House bill eliminates the deduction for income and sales taxes, but retains the deduction of up to $10,000 in property taxes per tax filer. The Senate bill eliminates the deduction entirely. NACo has released a side-by-side comparison of the two bills as they currently stand; this document can be found on NACo’s website.
Additional resources are available at NACo’s Action Center on tax reform (http://www.naco.org/advocacy/action-centers/tax-reform). Additional information on the State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction is available on the website of Americans Against Double Taxation, a coalition in which NACo is participating (http://www.americansagainstdoubletaxation.org/). VACo will continue to work closely with NACo as tax reform discussions continue.
VACo Contact: Katie Boyle