Conservatives demand changes to House GOP tax bill

By Mike DeBonis November 7 at 1:56 PM

House Republicans are facing new pressure from conservatives to make changes to their sweeping tax plan, days before Senate GOP leaders are slated to release a bill that would need support from party moderates to pass.

The president of the Club for Growth, an influential group promoting tax cuts, issued a statement Tuesday saying parts of the House bill “fails the pro-growth test,” while social conservative groups pushed lawmakers to restore a tax credit for families who adopt children.

“All in all, this bill must be changed if Republicans intend to keep their promise of real pro-growth, job-creating tax cuts,” Club for Growth’s president, David McIntosh, said, advocating for changes that would further reduce the tax bills owed by the wealthy.

The group is calling on lawmakers to cut taxes on income over $1 million, which the House bill as currently written would leave unchanged at 39.6 percent. The group also wants the bill’s authors to make it easier for businesses to claim a lower 25 percent income tax rate, as well as to speed up their planned repeal of the estate tax, in a bid to promote economic growth.

Meanwhile, groups including the National Right to Life Committee, Focus on the Family and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops mobilized to restore an existing tax credit that’s worth up to $13,570 for families who adopt children.

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