Conference Committee Continues work on Tax Bill

House and Senate conferees continue to hammer out differences between two versions of HB 3, the tax bill, and other funding measures. As it stands, both versions of the bill contain credits for physicians who care for Medicaid and CHIP patients. TAFP along with the Texas Primary Care Coalition is working to ensure that those credits stay in the final legislation.

The Primary Care Coalition recently sent a letter to the conferees stressing the need for the credits. You can use the model to call, fax or e-mail a similar message. click here for letter

The Senate conferees are Sen. Steve Ogden (R-Bryan), Sen. Judith Zaffirini (D-Laredo), Sen. Todd Staples (R-Palestine), Sen. Troy Fraser (R-Horseshoe Bay), and Sen. Kim Brimer (R-Fort Worth). They will join House conferees (Chair) Rep. Jim Keffer (R-Eastland), Rep. Warren Chisum (R-Pampa), Rep. John Otto (R-Dayton), Rep. David Swinford (R-Amarillo), and Rep. Charlie Geren (R-Ft. Worth).

According to the Dallas Morning News and Associated Press, highlights of the Senate’s new tax bill include the following.

• It gives physicians a 20-percent tax credit for Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program receipts, with no minimum required to be eligible for the credits.
• An amendment was offered to tax elective cosmetic surgery, but it was not adopted.
• Businesses are given a choice of paying either a 2.5 percent rate on net taxable income or 1.75 percent on employee compensation. If a company pays a payroll tax, it would pay no more than $1,500 per employee. However, at a minimum, no business must pay, at least 0.25 percent of its gross receipts
• It raises the state sales and motor vehicle sales taxes a quarter of a cent the first year — to 6.50 percent — and then another quarter to 6.75 percent in the second year.
• It increases the state sin taxes, with cigarette taxes jumping 75 cents a pack to $1.16 and taxes on alcoholic beverages going up 25 percent.
• It rewrites the franchise tax, which five of six businesses now avoid paying due to loopholes. It applies to most businesses now. Sole proprietorships, public entities, not-for-profits, and small businesses with gross receipts of less than $150,000 a year would be exempted.

For a side-by-side comparison of the House and Senate versions of the tax bill, go to www.texmed.org/Template.aspx?id=3761