http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?p...d=aHF3QbLOiXvs
The House approved the legislation yesterday on a 403-12 vote; the Senate passed it 98-0 on Nov. 4. White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Obama will sign the bill today...
The measure extends until April 30 the homebuyers tax credit that would otherwise expire at the end of this month.
The jobless will get as many as 20 additional weeks of unemployment assistance, depending on where they live.
Companies will be given expanded ability to apply losses to previous years’ income, allowing them to qualify this year for $33 billion in tax refunds, according to Congress’s Joint Committee on Taxation. The legislation also includes a tax break to help victims of Bernard Madoff’s multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme.
McDermott said lawmakers will probably move to approve additional extensions of jobless benefits to help the unemployed through much of next year, at a cost he predicted could reach $80 billion.
More than 1.4 million Americans have claimed the homebuyer credit at a cost so far of about $10 billion, according to the Treasury Department.
Under the new bill, couples earning up to $225,000 a year and individuals earning up to $125,000 will be eligible for the credit. That’s up from the current $75,000 limit for individuals and $150,000 for couples.
Current Homeowners
The bill also will allow homebuyers who have owned their prior residence for at least five years to receive a $6,500 credit, an expansion of the program. Those who sell their new home or no longer use it as their main residence within three years would have to repay the credit. Homes worth more than $800,000 wouldn’t be eligible.
The legislation would provide 14 additional weeks of unemployment benefits in all states, plus another six weeks in states with jobless rates topping 8.5 percent.
The bill won’t add to the budget deficit, according to congressional estimates, in part because it would be financed by delaying until 2018 a tax break for multinational corporations related to taxes they pay abroad. The legislation would also extend a 0.2 percent employer payroll surtax that otherwise would have expired at the end of the year.
The House approved the legislation yesterday on a 403-12 vote; the Senate passed it 98-0 on Nov. 4. White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Obama will sign the bill today...
The measure extends until April 30 the homebuyers tax credit that would otherwise expire at the end of this month.
The jobless will get as many as 20 additional weeks of unemployment assistance, depending on where they live.
Companies will be given expanded ability to apply losses to previous years’ income, allowing them to qualify this year for $33 billion in tax refunds, according to Congress’s Joint Committee on Taxation. The legislation also includes a tax break to help victims of Bernard Madoff’s multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme.
McDermott said lawmakers will probably move to approve additional extensions of jobless benefits to help the unemployed through much of next year, at a cost he predicted could reach $80 billion.
More than 1.4 million Americans have claimed the homebuyer credit at a cost so far of about $10 billion, according to the Treasury Department.
Under the new bill, couples earning up to $225,000 a year and individuals earning up to $125,000 will be eligible for the credit. That’s up from the current $75,000 limit for individuals and $150,000 for couples.
Current Homeowners
The bill also will allow homebuyers who have owned their prior residence for at least five years to receive a $6,500 credit, an expansion of the program. Those who sell their new home or no longer use it as their main residence within three years would have to repay the credit. Homes worth more than $800,000 wouldn’t be eligible.
The legislation would provide 14 additional weeks of unemployment benefits in all states, plus another six weeks in states with jobless rates topping 8.5 percent.
The bill won’t add to the budget deficit, according to congressional estimates, in part because it would be financed by delaying until 2018 a tax break for multinational corporations related to taxes they pay abroad. The legislation would also extend a 0.2 percent employer payroll surtax that otherwise would have expired at the end of the year.
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