Tax Overhaul in Congress' Future? Some CUNA Staffers say it Could be in the Cards

WASHINGTON-Congressional interest in savings legislation during the 109th Congress may have deeper implications in the long-term, according to some CUNA staffers. “Irrespective of who’s in charge, there will be an increased emphasis on savings legislation,” CUNA Legislative Counsel for Tax, Pensions, and Housing Leon Peace stated. That includes both common savings as well as tax `incentivized’ savings. He continued, “Both parties have focused on the need to increase the savings rates among low- and moderate-income taxpayers and for that reason, we believe, pensions, retirement savings, et cetera should be in the forefront irrespective of how the election comes out.” CUNA Vice President and Senior Legislative Counsel Gary Kohn added, “The interesting thing about that is that could be a short term goal. For a long-term goal, both parties are talking about taking a look at an overhaul of the tax code, whether it’s looking at a.national sales tax or a flat tax. That’s something that would take a major commitment on the part of either president and a lot of salesmanship and would be a multi-year project. That will be interesting to keep an eye on that as well.” Credit unions will have to stay alert during any reworking of the tax code, Kohn commented. Regarding whether credit unions should be concerned about a tax overhaul, he said, “It would depend on what format it took. Certainly, that’s why I say it would be a very important issue and one that we would have to definitely be involved in and there are all kinds of variations on that theme and we’ll just have to take a look and see what discussions lead to.”