By Mark Ballard
The Advocate, Baton Rouge, La.
(TNS)
WASHINGTON (June 7) — Faced with criticism of President Donald Trump’s signature “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” Republican leadership have focused their defense on how the tax breaks will boost the economy.
The 1,037-page bill is chock full of increased spending for border security and the military, but the biggest ticket items are sweeping tax cuts that the White House says “means an extra $5,000 in Americans’ pockets” through decreases in tax bills. All of which would be paid for, at least partially, by cuts to Medicaid and food stamp spending.
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The Congressional Budget Office calculated that the bill’s $1.3 trillion reduction in spending doesn’t cover the $3.7 trillion cost of the tax breaks and other spending, meaning the bill would add $2.4 trillion over the next decade to the nation’s $36.2 trillion debt.
Trump, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Benton, Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson, and other Republican leaders criticize the CBO, a nonpartisan arm of Congress, for figures they say lowballs the legislation’s economic benefits. (To be fair: Lawmakers on both sides trash the CBO when its predictions don’t support their talking points.)
Behind the fiery rhetoric is an argument that the biggest portion of debt comes from extending Trump’s 2017 tax break, which for the time being is current policy and therefore shouldn’t be counted as future debt.
“If we do not get this bill done, the tax cuts of 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, will expire at the end of December. Every American will receive the largest tax increase in US history all at once,” Johnson said. “We’ve made the tax cuts permanent, and we’ve infused it with a pro-growth series of policies that will get the economy going again. It will be jet fuel to the economy.”
Phenomenal economic growth will increase revenues and more than offset the cost of the tax cuts, he added.
Not every Republican buys that theory.
The feud between Elon Musk and Trump, for instance, began with the Musk’s contentions that Trump’s bill would increase the deficit and should be rejected. Some Senate Republicans, such as Sen. Rand Paul, R-Kentucky, have voiced similar fears.
- Related article: Trump Says Musk’s Tax Bill Criticism is Over EV Mandate Cut
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The cornerstone of the legislation—making the 2017 Trump tax cuts permanent—would stave off an increase in taxes that will occur next year if the bill is not enacted.
Marginal tax rates would lock in from 10% to 37% depending on income levels. Taxpayers won’t see additional federal tax withholding from their paychecks.
The bill also makes permanent the current higher standard deductions—$14,600 for individuals and $29,200 for married couples—and temporarily increases the amounts by $1,000 for single filers and $2,000 in joint returns.
New tax breaks include a deduction up to $10,000 on loans to buy personal passenger vehicles. That amount phases out for joint filers earning more than $200,000 annually. The Tax Foundation, a policy thinktank founded in 1937, estimates that state tax collections would fall by about $2.2 billion nationwide from this deduction.
Deductions basically lower a filer’s adjusted gross income, which is the starting point on most state returns, meaning lower taxes for the states.
The legislation also exempts qualified tips and overtime pay from federal income taxation.
While good for individual workers, the overtime deduction could cost the Louisiana treasury about $101 million, according to the Tax Foundation.
Deductions for tips could cost Louisiana about $15 million if the Legislature doesn’t enact legislation that would offset the losses on a state level, estimates the Tax Foundation.
The bill also includes a temporary $4,000 bonus added to the $15,000 standard deduction for seniors. The enhanced deduction is a substitute for Trump’s campaign promise to remove taxes on Social Security, which under longstanding federal law are funded by a payroll tax during working years and is taxed again as income when benefits are paid.
The huge measure also includes a myriad of tax breaks for businesses.
Changes in wording to Section 179 of the Internal Revenue Code would credit large purchases of equipment and software up to $2.5 million on a business’s tax returns, and Section 168(k) would accelerate depreciation that can be deducted from taxes.
“Your life will be dramatically better because you’re going to have more money in your pocket,” Scalise said. “Your small business that you’re working for, or large business, is going to now invest more money into the economy.”
The House-passed One Big Beautiful Bill Act is before the Senate, where changes are likely.
Photo caption: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) speaks during a press conference on May 20, 2025.
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© 2025 The Advocate, Baton Rouge, La. Visit www.theadvocate.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency LLC.
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Tags: Congress, Legislation, tax breaks, Taxes, Trump tax cuts, Trump tax plan
