Budget Talks Making Progress on Tax Increase as Deadline Looms
Negotiators made progress overnight as they tried to reach a last-minute U.S. budget deal that would let income taxes go up on some top earners.
With taxes set to increase for almost every U.S. worker at midnight, there is still no agreement yet and gaps between the two parties remain, according to people familiar with the talks who requested anonymity. Republicans and Democrats were narrowing the threshold for tax increases to between $400,000 and $500,000 in annual income.
“My sense is progress is being made,” Representative Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, the top Democrat on the House Budget Committee, told Bloomberg Television. “It’s not a done deal. I think it’s a little better than 50 percent that we’re going to be able to avoid going over the fiscal cliff by midnight tonight.”
Talks between Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell stalled yesterday because of disputes over income tax rates, the estate tax and other issues. McConnell reached out to Vice President Joe Biden in an effort to break the impasse, while staffers worked into the night trading and reviewing offers. The two made progress, according to a person familiar with the negotiations.
To contact the reporters on this story: Kathleen Hunter in Washington at khunter9@bloomberg.net; Roxana Tiron in Washington at rtiron@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Jodi Schneider at jschneider50@bloomberg.net
Budget Talks Making Progress on Tax Increase as Deadline Looms
Jay Mallin/Bloomberg
Dawn breaks at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on Monday.
Dawn breaks at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on Monday. Photographer: Jay Mallin/Bloomberg
Dec. 31 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Representative Chris Van Hollen, a Democrat from Maryland, talks about the negotiations to avoid the year-end fiscal cliff of automatic budget cuts and tax increases. He speaks with Peter Cook on Bloomberg Television's "In The Loop." (Source: Bloomberg)
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid
Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat from Nevada, walks through the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on Sunday.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat from Nevada, walks through the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on Sunday. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg
Vice President Joe Biden
Scott Olsen/Bloomberg
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell reached out to Vice President Joe Biden in an effort to break the impasse, while staffers worked into the night trading and reviewing offers. The two made progress, according to a person familiar with the negotiations.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell reached out to Vice President Joe Biden in an effort to break the impasse, while staffers worked into the night trading and reviewing offers. The two made progress, according to a person familiar with the negotiations. Photographer: Scott Olsen/Bloomberg
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell
Pete Marovich/Bloomberg
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky, is surrounded by members of the media as he walks through the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Sunday.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky, is surrounded by members of the media as he walks through the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Sunday. Photographer: Pete Marovich/Bloomberg
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