Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Highlights of the plan include:

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Corporate tax rate: The agreement drops the corporate tax rate to 21 percent from the current 35 percent rate beginning in 2018, rather than 2019. Negotiator­s agreed to bump it up to 21 percent to help offset revenue losses from other tax breaks, the aides said.

Individual tax rate: It drops the top individual income tax rate to 37 percent, down from the current rate of 39.6 percent, a change that benefits upper-income households.

Deductions: The bill also allows individual­s to deduct up to $10,000 in state and local taxes, split between property taxes and either income or sales taxes paid. This was done to meet the demands of House Republican­s from districts in high-tax states, including California, New York and New Jersey.

Mortgage interest deductions:

It would allow mortgage interest deductions on the first $750,000 of new mortgages. Existing mortgages would be unaffected.

Corporate alternativ­e

minimum tax: It would rescind the corporate alternativ­e minimum tax. The inclusion of this tax in the Senate bill was criticized by many business groups, who said it would prohibit their ability to use tax credits for research and developmen­t and other tax breaks.

Individual alternativ­e

minimum tax: The conference bill preserves the individual alternativ­e minimum tax, which the House bill had eliminated and the Senate bill retained in a watered-down form. However, the conference version will apply to even fewer taxpayers

than the Senate bill would have, a congressio­nal aide said.

Pass-through tax deduction:

Keeps a provision allowing a 20 percent tax deduction for so-called pass-through companies, whose owners, including sole proprietor­s, partners and others, pay taxes on profits through the individual code.

ACA requiremen­t repeal: It adopts the Senate position to repeal the Affordable Care Act requiremen­t that Americans buy health insurance or face financial penalties.

Graduate school tuition

waiver: It drops a provision that would have treated graduate school tuition waivers as taxable income.

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