North Dakota Congressman Kevin Cramer has been holding a series of roundtable meetings across the state – gathering feedback about the potential for tax reform and relief.
One such roundtable was held Tuesday (10-17-17) in Bismarck.
Cramer said while the House is ready to pass a tax reform bill, there’s still some uncertainty in the Senate.
"The Senate is going to try to take up a budget this week," Cramer said in an interview. "The Senate will be minus one Republican -- Sen. Thad Cochran -- so there's very little margin. Why that's important -- without a reconciled budget, we in the House can't go to budget reconciliation."
Under budget reconciliation, the Senate needs only 51 votes to pass tax reform – instead of the 60 needed to stop any filibuster – and bring a bill up for an up or down vote. But Cramer said he doesn’t think Senate leader Mitch McConnell would be scheduling a vote – if he didn’t have at least 51.
"There's a real sense among leadership in both chambers and in the White House that people want to get this done," Cramer said. "It's a hallmark moment."
Cramer said there's agreement on the basic principles -- lower rates, simpler forms, fewer deductions.
"There's enough common goal here, that I think the team can get it done," Cramer said.
North Dakota Farm Bureau President Daryl Lies attended the Bismarck roundtable. He said the Farm Bureau’s top priority is to repeal the estate tax. Those who ant to repeal the tax have labeled it the "Death Tax."
"To think that anyone should be taxed for an event that all of us are going to succumb to at the end of our lives is a ridiculous notion," Lies said in an interview.
Cramer said while he favors repeal, this is one area where there could be compromise.
"My personal belief is, if we are able to raise the threshold, we would take that as a victory," Cramer said. "I'm playing my cards a little bit here -- but I do think that's one of the negotiable issues in the framework."
Lies said the Farm Bureau also wants to see changes in the capital gains tax. And he would also like to see at least some of the agriculture tax deductions maintained.
"Farmers and ranchers work on a very thin profit margin," Lies said. "Those kinds of things are extremely important to us."
Cramer said the House Ways and Means Committee has been working on tax reform since the first of the year – and he said there have been hearings and debates, meaning it is following a more regular order in Congress.