On Wednesday the House of Representatives voted 244-185 in favor of a reconciliation tax bill that will cost $70 billion over the next five years. See our earlier blog post here to view details of the vote.
A day later, the Senate approved the bill by a 54-44 vote .
The bill extends tax cuts on dividends and capital gains that weren't even set to expire until 2008. Also, this legislation only offers a one-time temporary Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) fix for 2006. Instituting a long term remedy to the growing problem of the middle-class paying the AMT is crucial and necessary tax reform. Unless AMT reform is legislated over the long run, more than 15 million middle-class taxpayers will be forced to pay the AMT even though it was originally created as an alternative tax for the very wealthy.
Interested in knowing how your Senators voted? Here's the voting record for the bill.
The votes fell mostly along party lines, but here's a list of Senators who didn't vote with their party and links if you'd like to send them a comment:
Republicans who voted against the tax cut bill:
Olympia Snowe - Maine
George Voinovich - Ohio
Lincoln Chafee - Rhode Island
Democrats who voted for the bill:
Bill Nelson - Florida
Benjamin Nelson - Nebraska
Mark Pryor - Arkansas