East Idaho Times

Washington, D.C.--U.S. Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, delivered remarks on the Democrats’ scheduling of a vote on a tax bill less than twenty-four hours before the August state-work period. Crapo reiterated that Senate Republicans continue to have concerns with the policy, urged his colleagues to separately pass the bipartisan provisions in the bill, and reaffirmed his willingness to negotiate a child tax credit solution that a majority of Republicans can support.

Excerpts of Senator Crapo’s remarks are below:

“In today’s attempt to score political points, Democrats are moving to a bill, H.R. 7024, that has been languishing for six months in the hopes of fabricating a narrative that Republicans don’t support small businesses, children or alleviating poverty. However, if my Democrat colleagues were serious about delivering relief to small businesses and working families, they would have worked with Senate Republicans in earnest on a solution that would gain broad support among our members.

“For those who accuse Republicans of not caring about children, I would remind my colleagues that it was Republicans who created the child tax credit. It was intended to provide tax relief to working families. Yet more than $30 billion of the cost to expand the child tax credit in this bill—about 91 percent—would go to individuals who pay no federal income tax. That isn’t tax relief – it’s a subsidy.

“While Senate Republicans have also been accused of playing politics, the timing of today’s vote—coupled with the lack of meaningful engagement since January to reach a compromise—confirms that the strategy was always a take-it-or-leave-it proposition in the Senate.

“If my Democrat colleagues want to show that they are serious about supporting small businesses, providing disaster tax relief, alleviating double taxation on activity between the U.S. and Taiwan, and eliminating fraud in the ERTC program—all bipartisan—then I call on them to separately pass Senator Young and Senator Hassan’s bipartisan American Innovation and Jobs Act that would reinstate R&D expensing; the bipartisan Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2024; the bipartisan and bicameral U.S.-Taiwan Expedited Double Tax Relief Act; and Senator Tillis’ bill to end the ERTC program.

“On the child tax credit, it bears repeating that Republicans doubled the credit amount from $1,000 to $2,000 in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and provided additional help to low-income families by lowering the phase-in floor and increasing refundability ofthe credit. If Democrats are serious about helping these working families,I am readyto push for an extensionof those changes beyond 2025.

“I have maintaineda willingness tonegotiate abillthat provides meaningfultax reliefto Americans now—a bill thata majorityofRepublicansinthischambercan support—buttoday’s senselessshowvotefurtherdemonstratesthatDemocratsarenotseriousaboutdoingso.”