Trump faces a crucial weekend meeting as the SALT caucus demands changes to the tax deduction cap and threatens to withhold support Trump faces a crucial weekend meeting as the SALT caucus demands changes to the tax deduction cap and threatens to withhold support

as president-elect Donald Trump As he prepares to push for major legislation less than two weeks after taking office, a group of Republicans is threatening to block his tax reform agenda unless the controversial State and local taxes (SALT) Deduction cap resolved.

These legislators are called salt caucusAccording to the “Capitol Hill” report, they are demanding that the cap be increased or eliminated to ensure their support for Trump’s tax bill.

The SALT caucus will meet with Trump this weekend to discuss their demands and try to reach a compromise. A key member, Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) has made it clear that he will not support the tax bill unless the SALT cap is lifted.

The cap was implemented under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, limiting the deduction for state and local taxes to $10,000 per year.

This particularly affects residents of high-tax states like New York, California and New Jersey, where taxpayers pay much higher state and local taxes.

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Lawler recently introduced legislation that would increase the SALT cap to $100,000 for single filers and $200,000 for joint filers, arguing that the current caps create a “marriage penalty” for married couples.

The Capitol Hill newspaper wrote that the proposed cap increase would bring some relief to taxpayers in blue states.

However, the push to lift the SALT cap is creating tension within the Republican Party.

Fiscal conservatives, particularly those in the Freedom Caucus, opposed the move, warning it would increase the federal deficit. They argued that deficit reduction should be a priority, with one member stressing that raising the SALT cap would make it more difficult to reduce the deficit.

In an effort to bridge the divide, SALT-focused Republicans reportedly moved away from calling for a total repeal of the cap and instead pushed for raising it.

They argued that such a compromise would reduce the burden on taxpayers in high-tax states without eliminating the cap entirely.

Although Trump supported reversing the SALT cap during the campaign, the challenge will be balancing the demands of the SALT caucus with the fiscal priorities of other Republicans.

Fiscal conservatives have serious concerns about the SALT cap. According to the “Capitol Hill” report, experts estimate that raising the cap could increase the deficit by as much as $450 billion, while completely eliminating the cap could cost up to $900 billion.

The SALT issue complicates efforts to enact a deficit-neutral or deficit-reduction bill as Republicans have set a $2.5 trillion target for cuts to offset the costs of their tax agenda.

The weekend meeting with Trump will be a key moment in the ongoing debate.

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