On December 19, 2019 Congress passed a budget deal to keep the government open, and included in the bill was the Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2019.” The Senate passed the legislation and President Trump signed the spending bill on December 20, 2019.
The provisions in the deal will reward certain industries and businesses with tax breaks that could add more than $427 billion to the federal debt over the next decade, according to the congressional Joint Committee on Taxation.
The Act extends certain expiring provisions including:
Subtitle A—Tax Relief and Support for Families and Individuals
Sec. 101. Exclusion from gross income of discharge of qualified principal residence indebtedness.
Sec. 102. Treatment of mortgage insurance premiums as qualified residence interest.
Sec. 103. Reduction in medical expense deduction floor.
Sec. 104. Deduction of qualified tuition and related expenses.
Sec. 105. Black lung disability trust fund excise tax.
Subtitle B—Incentives for Employment, Economic Growth, and Community
Development
Sec. 111. Indian employment credit.
Sec. 112. Railroad track maintenance credit.
Sec. 113. Mine rescue team training credit.
Sec. 114. 7-year recovery period for motorsports entertainment complexes.
Sec. 115. Accelerated depreciation for business property on Indian reservations.
Sec. 116. Expensing rules for certain productions.
Sec. 117. Empowerment zone tax incentives.
Sec. 118. American Samoa economic development credit.
Subtitle C—Incentives for Energy Production, Efficiency, and Green Economy
Jobs
Sec. 121. Biodiesel and renewable diesel.
Sec. 122. Second generation biofuel producer credit.
Sec. 123. Nonbusiness energy property.
Sec. 124. Qualified fuel cell motor vehicles.
Sec. 125. Alternative fuel refueling property credit.
Sec. 126. 2-wheeled plug-in electric vehicle credit.
Sec. 127. Credit for electricity produced from certain renewable resources.
Sec. 128. Production credit for Indian coal facilities.
Sec. 129. Energy efficient homes credit.
Sec. 130. Special allowance for second generation biofuel plant property.
Sec. 131. Energy efficient commercial buildings deduction.
Sec. 132. Special rule for sales or dispositions to implement FERC or State
electric restructuring policy for qualified electric utilities.
Sec. 133. Extension and clarification of excise tax credits relating to alternative
fuels.
Sec. 134. Oil spill liability trust fund rate.
Subtitle D—Certain Provisions Expiring at the End of 2019
Sec. 141. New markets tax credit.
Sec. 142. Employer credit for paid family and medical leave.
Sec. 143. Work opportunity credit.
Sec. 144. Certain provisions related to beer, wine, and distilled spirits.
Sec. 145. Look-thru rule for related controlled foreign corporations.
Sec. 146. Credit for health insurance costs of eligible individuals.
Act Eliminates the Obamacare Tax on Medical Devices and High-Cost “Cadillac” Health Insurance Benefits
Among the major changes included in the spending agreement is the elimination of certain taxes intended to fund the Affordable Care Act, including a tax on medical devices ( X-ray machines, pacemakers, artificial hearts and artificial hip and knee joints), health insurers and generous health plans.
The "Cadillac Tax", a proposal to tax high-cost, generous health insurance plans, was intended to be one of the primary methods the law paid for itself. However, it never went into effect. The House voted overwhelmingly to repeal the tax this year.
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