Baucus mulls marking up extension of Bush tax cuts

“Senator Baucus is currently
talking with members on both sides of the aisle about how the committee will
proceed with regard to an extension of the tax cuts, and will be in close
contact with them and with Leader Reid before making a decision regarding the
markup,” the aide said. 

Senate Finance Republicans
last week wrote Baucus urging him to host a markup on the tax cuts before the
August recess to strengthen consumer confidence in the economy. 

“Until businesses and
consumers can be confident that their taxes won’t rise next year, they will
continue to refrain from investing, job growth will stagnate, and as a result
consumer spending will remain subdued,” their letter stated. 

The Bush tax cuts are slated
to expire at the end of the year. Democratic leaders have vowed to extend
provisions benefiting the middle class and allow relief for the upper brackets
to expire. 

Some believe the sluggish
economic recovery could pressure lawmakers into extending all the Bush tax
cuts, which would cost more than $1 trillion and be extremely difficult to
offset. Current rules allow the middle-class tax cuts can be extended for two
years without offsets, but lawmakers would have to pay for any extension to tax
cuts for the wealthy. 

Baucus is expected to meet with Finance members Thursday and
discuss whether or not it is feasible to host a markup on the Bush tax cuts
before the August break.