Schneider Statement on Mark-Up of Legislation to Eliminate SALT Deduction Cap

Today, Congressman Brad Schneider (D-IL), a member of the House Committee on Ways and Means, released the following statement after the markup of H.R.5377, the Restoring Tax Fairness for States and Localities Act. Congressman Schneider is an original co-sponsor of this legislation, which would repeal the $10,000 cap on the state and local tax deduction:

"Forcing Americans to pay federal tax on money they already paid to state and local governments is double taxation and it's wrong. But that is exactly the situation thousands of Tenth District residents faced because of the cap on the State and Local Tax (SALT) Deduction in the 2017 Republican tax law, which was designed to punish states like Illinois. Today, I am proud the House Ways and Means Committee passed legislation to eliminate the cap and bring relief to Tenth District families. As a member of the Ways & Means SALT working group, I have advocated for this change since the new law went into effect, and I hope our legislative fix will see swift consideration on the floor before the end of this year."

VIDEO: Rep. Schneider spoke at the mark-up in support of the legislation.

This legislation would eliminate the marriage penalty by doubling the cap to $20,000 for joint filers for 2019 and would fully restore the state and local tax (SALT) deduction for 2020 and 2021.

Background:

According to IRS data, 41.4% of tax filers in Illinois's Tenth Congressional District used the SALT deduction in 2016, claiming an average of $18,874 – well above the new $10,000 cap.

According to a recent study by the U.S. Department of Treasury, approximately 11 million filers this year will be affected by the $10,000 cap on SALT deductions.