General Explanations of the Administration's Fiscal Year 2017 Revenue Proposals

In the FY 2017 Budget, the President proposes a number of reforms to the Code that would make our tax system more efficient, simpler, and more equitable. With respect to the taxation of business income, the number of special deductions, credits, and other tax preferences provided to businesses in the Code has expanded significantly since the last comprehensive tax reform effort nearly three decades ago. Such tax preferences help well-connected special interests but do little for economic growth. To be successful in an increasingly competitive global economy, the Nation cannot afford to maintain a tax code burdened with such tax breaks; instead, the Code needs to ensure that the United States is the most attractive place for entrepreneurship and business growth. Therefore, the Budget includes a detailed set of business tax reform proposals that form the basis of a broad reform that would achieve the following five goals: (1) cut the corporate tax rate and pay for it by making structural reforms and eliminating loopholes and subsidies; (2) strengthen American manufacturing and innovation; (3) strengthen the international tax system; (4) simplify and cut taxes for small businesses; and (5) avoid adding to deficits in the short-term or the long-term. In addition to the elements of tax reform, the Budget includes other business tax proposals that close loopholes, improve compliance, and simplify the tax system. The Administration's receipt proposals begin the process of reforming the Code to help address the challenges faced by working families. These proposals: (1) help make work pay by expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit for workers without qualifying children and creating a new second earner credit; (2) reform and simplify tax incentives that help families save for retirement and pay for college and child care; and (3) reform capital gains taxation to eliminate a loophole that lets substantial capital gains income escape tax forever. They also reduce the deficit and make the tax system fairer by eliminating a number of tax loopholes and reducing tax benefits for higher-income taxpayers.