Current Events > Last minute provisions in tax bill enrich Trump, Ryan, other GOPers

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http://www.ibtimes.com/political-capital/donald-trump-gop-leaders-could-be-enriched-last-minute-tax-break-inserted-final

Republican congressional leaders and real estate moguls could be personally enriched by a real-estate-related provision GOP lawmakers slipped into the final tax bill released Friday evening, according to experts interviewed by International Business Times. The legislative language was not part of previous versions of the bill and was added despite ongoing conflict-of-interest questions about the intertwining real estate interests and governmental responsibilities of President Donald Trump the bills chief proponent.

The Trump organization and the Kushners (the family of Ivanka's husband, Jared) have overseen vast real estate empires, and top GOP lawmakers writing the tax bill collectively have tens of millions of dollars of ownership stakes in real-estate-related LLCs. The new tax provision would specifically allow owners of large real estate holdings through LLCs to deduct a percentage of their pass through income from their taxes, according to experts. Although Trump, who became famous for his real estate holdings, has transitioned into branding in recent years, federal records show Trump has ownership stakes in myriad LLCs.

The new provision was not in the bill passed by the House or the Senate. Instead, it was inserted into the final bill during reconciliation negotiations between Republicans from both chambers. The provision, said experts, would offer a special tax cut to LLCs with few employees and large amounts of depreciable property assets, namely buildings: rent generating apartment and office buildings.

This helps people who have held property for awhile, like Donald Trump, David Kamin, an New York University law professor who served as a special assistant to the president for economic policy in the Obama administration, told IBT. If youve got an LLC thats a trade or business with a bunch of real estate holdings and few employees, [I] think youre now golden. You get the deduction.

Similarly, Urban Institute tax expert Steve Rosenthal told IBT the provision would specifically benefit real estate investors.

It would benefit real estate businesses especially, which typically operate as pass-through businesses, most often LLCs, said Rosenthal, a former tax attorney at Ropes & Gray. An LLC's building, and other depreciable property, would be qualified property for purposes of the new test, as long as the LLC had not fully depreciated the property. That would be unlikely, as commercial real property is currently depreciated over 39 years.

IBT previously reported that 13 GOP lawmakers directly sculpting the bill including U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan have between $36 million and $163 million worth of ownership stakes in real estate-related LLCs. Those entities generated between $2.6 million and $16 million in pass through income and could benefit from the new provision.

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I'm just saying, a lot of the problems in the nation could be fixed if the guillotine was back in vogue
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gunplagirl posted...

I'm just saying, a lot of the problems in the nation could be fixed if the guillotine was back in vogue

When you're right, you're right
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Really we should be applauding him for his ingenuity.

If he's making us richer, why not let him make himself richer? Am I right guys?
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gunplagirl posted...

I'm just saying, a lot of the problems in the nation could be fixed if the guillotine was back in vogue

Well that's what the 2nd amendment is for anyways.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow-through_entity

Seems like this is legal. How is it different from other tax deductions? What's wrong with real estate owners pocketing more of their investment's profits? Most government officials are financially successful individuals who have invested in a myriad of things. This includes Bernie Sanders. It's probable that any law that favors business and investment will benefit government officials who oppose or support said law.

Seems like this would benefit anyone who owns properties.
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bump for tc
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