NOTABLE QUOTABLE
"We know that we're going to get it right, instead of getting it done fast [...]. We're going to make sure that members of Congress, and therefore the public, have the time to read what is agreed to. But we're not going to let the arbitrary Dec. 11 deadline stop us from getting this right. We're going to get the best agreement we can possibly get, and those negotiations are ongoing."
–House Speaker Paul Ryan
Dec. 8, 2015
LEGISLATIVE LANDSCAPE
The Best Laid Schemes o' Mice and Men. Congress will be Congress: lawmakers missed the Dec. 11 deadline to pass an omnibus appropriations bill. On Friday, Congress passed a five-day CR to buy more time for negotiations on the year-end spending bill. The stopgap will keep the federal government running through Dec. 16. Members have a few extra days to work out an agreement on a number of policy riders that have held up the appropriations process.
After a call with fellow Republicans Monday evening, House Speaker Paul Ryan told reporters that both the omnibus and tax extenders bills are expected to be filed...
Will They or Won't They? An Omnibus + Extenders Love Story. We had hoped to be able to tell our readers by now that some tax extenders will live happily ever after in the land of permanence. Alas, the course of extenders negotiations never did run smooth. Negotiations for the omnibus and extenders are all tangled up in one another. Republicans and Democrats are still going back and forth on...
House Passes Ban on Internet Access Taxes. The House passed, 256-158, the customs enforcement legislation, H.R. 644, which also contains a ban on...
PRESIDENTIAL TAX TALK
Clinton Introduces Anti-Inversion Plan. Companies that move their tax addresses overseas would face an "exit tax" under Hillary Clinton's plan to end corporate inversions. The campaign has not provided details as to the rate of the tax; the penalty would be imposed on a company's overseas earnings, which are not taxed until they are brought back to the United States. The exit tax on deferred income is a part...
REGULATORY WORLD
Ten EU Finance Ministers Agree Upon FTT; Details Remain Unclear. After months of negotiations, ten countries have managed to agree upon levying a tax on financial transactions. However, the details of such a tax, including an exact tax rate, the scope of its application, and how proceeds from the tax will be allocated are still pending and must be hashed out before a final deal is signed next summer. An uphill road lies ahead for negotiations. The current version of the financial transactions tax (FTT) would impose...
Yahoo Forgoes Spinning Off Alibaba. Yahoo! Inc. has decided that it will not pursue a spin-off transaction of its Alibaba stake. Rather, under pressure from Starboard Value LP, its activist investor, Yahoo has decided to look into a reverse spin-off where Yahoo's assets would be placed in a new company. Earlier this year, Yahoo announced that the IRS would not rule...
Not Many Taxes in Place for Carbon Dioxide Emissions. On Dec. 7, Pascal Saint-Amans, head of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) Tax Policy and Administration, said that there are no effective taxes...
LOOKING AHEAD
Relevant Agency Activity
Tuesday, 12/15
Federal Reserve Board
The Federal Open Market Committee holds a closed meeting, Dec. 15-16. Read more here.
Other Activity
Tuesday, 12/15
Urban Institute
The Urban Institute holds a discussion on "Should Governments Tax Soda, Sweets, and Junk Food?" Read more here.
POLITICO
POLITICO's Morning Money holds a briefing on financial reform and the U.S. economy. White House Council of Economic Adviser Chairman Jason Furman is the guest speaker. Read more here.
Thursday, 12/17
Global Capital and Tax Reform, At Home and Abroad
The Tax Council Policy Institutes and KPMG host a webcast to discuss a number of tax issues related to the taxation of capital, BEPS, and other international issues.
Friday, 12/18
American Enterprise Institute
AEI holds a discussion on the OECD's BEP reports and how the recommendations would impact U.S. companies and tax system. Read more here.
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