Tax

Though fires wreak havoc causing property damage and loss of life, the hit to local economies — and their bonds — tends to be ameliorated by state and federal funding.

Tax Reform 2.0 would make permanent the lower individual tax rates in last year’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that are scheduled to expire in 2025.

The plan for a second tax reform bill is galvanizing municipal market groups to step up lobbying efforts to tout the importance and benefits of munis to lawmakers on Capitol Hill.

House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., blasted the Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision in South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. as having “the potential to unleash chaos for consumers and remote sellers, particularly small business sellers.”

The 1.2-percentage point reduction will amount to $12,000 in saving on a $1 million tax settlement.

Tuesday’s House hearing will be chaired by Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., who was a steadfast supporter of the previous standard under which a remote seller had to have a physical presence in a state in order to be required to collect sales taxes.

The loss of the SALT deduction cost New Yorkers an additional $14.3 billion in 2018, state Attorney General Barbara Underwood told the Citizens Budget Commission.

George Callas most recently was senior tax counsel to House Speaker Paul Ryan and was a chief architect of the tax reform legislation enacted in December.

The study adds to the growing body of findings by think tanks and credit rating agencies that highlight the pitfalls states face when considering new taxes on e-cigarettes and marijuana because of the changing habits of American consumers.

California reported an $8.5 billion surplus in the budget passed last month.