DALLAS — When the U.S. House of Representatives returns from its August recess, expect the battle over President Biden’s budget and economic agenda to begin in earnest.
House Democrats managed to overcome a procedural hurdle last month to pass a motion that allowed committees to begin writing the $3.5 Trillion budget bill and filling in some of the details. The framework had already passed the U.S. Senate. But the votes in both chambers were along party lines.
The Biden Administration has promised the budget will not raise taxes on families earning less than $400,000 a year, small businesses or family farms. Instead, according to Democrats’ blueprint, it would raise taxes on the wealthy and corporations.
Congressman Kevin Brady says he’s not buying any of it.
“It turns out none of that is true,” he said on Inside Texas Politics. “In fact, the business tax rate will land, on the corporate side, on over a million small businesses, many of them here in Texas.”
The Congressman from the Houston area is the top Republican on the U.S. House Ways and Means committee. It is the oldest committee of Congress and the primary tax-writing committee in the House. Congressman Brady says a recent analysis by the Joint Committee on Taxation found that the corporate tax hikes proposed in the budget would ultimately lead to higher taxes for workers, retirees and many small businesses.
But if Democrats remain united in the House, there isn’t much the GOP can do. And without naming names, he says he’s looking at four centrist Texas Democrats, wondering aloud if they’ll help block the legislation.
“We do not have the votes to stop it. Only four votes will stop these tax hikes,” the Republican said.
The House is also expected to take up the infrastructure bill this month. Speaker Nancy Pelosi established a Sept. 27 deadline to vote on the $1 Trillion measure. Congressman Brady says he opposes the current bill, saying too much of it is “wasteful spending.” He would rather see a much smaller price tag.
“I think about a third of that bill is true infrastructure that I think every Texan would get behind," Brady said.
