Wyden Statement on Tax Extenders

WASHINGTON - Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today issued the following statement on the need to renew expired tax provisions to give certainty and relief to American workers and businesses:

“Today, American businesses of all sizes are making their required quarterly tax payments to the IRS and trying to chart their path forward for 2014 and beyond. At a time when entrepreneurs and innovators should be identifying investments to support their business strategies and pursuing growth opportunities, Congress’s failure to renew expired tax provisions is forcing these companies to make “no interest loans” to the federal government through higher taxes. It’s unacceptable that inaction by Congress is denying American business the clarity and certainty they need to plan for tomorrow.

This is a real issue that is impacting those at the heart of our country’s economic growth.

How? For example, because Congress has not renewed increased expensing limits under Section 179, industrious Oregon wine makers will be forced to pay more for a new wine press needed today to expand their business, or they may be forced to choose between new equipment and hiring new employees.

Also, with renewable energy incentives like the wind production tax credit in question, hundreds of millions of dollars in job-creating investments are at risk, and the United States is falling further behind its economic competitors, like Germany and China, in transforming its energy markets.

Finally, congressional inaction also severely complicates the ability of underwater homeowners to reduce their mortgage debt without being socked with a big tax bill.

Today, with taxes due, continuing inaction on renewing expired tax provisions is diverting business investment, driving unnecessarily higher taxes, and slowing economic growth. We cannot let this uncertainty drag on.

The Finance Committee came together this spring to produce the EXPIRE Act in a cooperative, bipartisan way. It wasn’t easy, but it got done. Now is the time to revive the EXPIRE Act and renew these important tax provisions while we push ahead on comprehensive reform.”

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