Senate amendment adopts “current tax policy baseline” to allow making TCJA tax provisions permanent
The Senate Budget Committee today released a budget resolution that amends the 2025 budget resolution passed by the House of Representatives on February 25, 2025. Read TaxNewsFlash
As described in the accompanying press release of Senate Budget Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-SC), the Senate’s amendment to the House budget resolution adds reconciliation instructions for Senate Committees, while preserving the House Committees’ instructions. The Senate amendment would adopt a budget baseline that is based on current tax policy, rather than current law. This, Graham said, “would allow the [2017] tax cuts to be made permanent.”
Unlike the House budget resolution that included specific reductions of $1.5 trillion, the Senate’s amendment creates a “savings floor” that provides the Senate flexibility in reducing spending. The Senate amendment would allow the Senate Finance Committee to increase the deficit by up to $1.5 trillion over the budget window to fund additional tax relief measures.
Finally, the Senate amendment provides for a $5 trillion extension of the debt limit through 2027.
Read a one-page summary of the Senate amendment prepared by Senate Republicans.
Next steps
The full Senate will now consider the amended budget resolution, and if passed by the Senate, the House must then agree to the Senate’s amendment before the budget reconciliation process may continue to reconciliation legislation.