Congressional Republicans are working on a multitrillion-dollar bill advancing President Donald Trump’s agenda – and it could include a modest tax hike on wealthy Americans, one of the House GOP’s tax writers said.
‘There’s potentially some talk about a tax hike on wealthier Americans. I think our goal in this committee, and the president’s goal, has been to provide tax relief for the working and middle class,’ Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., told Fox News Digital on Tuesday.
‘We have to find a way to pay for that, so we’ll have to see how this all shakes out.’
A senior House GOP aide who spoke with Fox News Digital also alluded to possible tax hikes on the table.
‘The reason we are in the majority and have the ability to do this entire process is because of working-class voters, not the wealthiest Americans,’ they said. ‘I believe our tax package will reflect that reality.’
Malliotakis sits on the House Ways and Means Committee, one of the most critical panels in the budget reconciliation process.
Reconciliation lowers the Senate’s passage threshold from 60 to 51, making it possible for the party that controls both chambers of Congress and the White House to pass massive policy overhauls while sidelining the opposition, in this case Democrats.
The process traditionally begins in the House, where seven committees are preparing to meet in the next two weeks to hash out policies under their relevant jurisdictions. Those will then be slotted into a larger budget framework, which is then considered by the House Budget Committee before a chamber-wide vote.
The Ways and Means Committee is responsible for the tax portion, a key priority for Trump.
The president wants Republicans to extend his 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) while also providing for a slate of new tax policies like eliminating duties on tips, overtime pay and Social Security checks for retirees.
Republicans are currently studying avenues to pay for those priorities.
Malliotakis signaled a corporate tax rate increase was likely off the table, but she’s among several Republican lawmakers who said they would be open to a small tax hike on the wealthy to pay for Trump’s middle- and working-class priorities.
‘Personally, I think that that should be on the table if we’re not going to make spending cuts. But I hope we make spending cuts,’ House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris, R-Md., told Fox News Digital.
But others said they were opposed.
‘I don’t think we have a revenue problem. I don’t think we should be looking for places to add revenue. I think we have a spending problem. Congress spends way too much money, too large of a portion of our GDP. We need to find ways of cutting spending,’ Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo., said.
It’s not immediately clear what shape such a tax hike could take. Republicans have discussed potential proposals, including raising the top tax bracket by roughly 1% after it was lowered by about 2% in TCJA. Another proposal would create a new tax bracket for millionaires, potentially of up to 40%.
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith, R-Mo., would not share any details of the forthcoming plan when asked about a possible tax hike.
‘There’s a lot of things that I’ve been reading in the press that have not been accurate, but I’m not going to say whether it’s accurate or not, and they’ll see the bill whenever we deliver it right before markup,’ Smith told Fox News Digital.
‘But what I will say is, is that we will have a tax bill that is pro-growth, pro-jobs, pro-family, pro-small business, and pro-workers. And Republicans believe in making sure that Americans keep more of their hard-earned dollars, and you’ll see a tax package that does that.’
He said Americans would likely get to see that plan in a matter of ‘days, not months.’
When reached for comment on a possible tax hike, a senior White House official told Fox News Digital, ‘The President is reviewing a wide range of tax cut proposals for inclusion in the reconciliation bill. He is most focused on tax policy that will help create more good paying jobs in America and delivering the major tax cuts he campaigned on for working and middle class Americans.’
Fox News Digital’s Deirdre Heavey contributed to this report