Federal Flash - Which education tax deductions are eliminated in the house tax bill?

That was Representative Suzanne Bonamici, Democrat from Oregon, at Wednesday's House Education Committee hearing on the impact of the opioid epidemic on schools and communities. Hello, and welcome to Federal Flash. I'm Monica Almond and I'm joined by Nikki McKinney. There's lots to cover about the Republican tax proposal, but first let's turn to Nikki for more on the hearing. Thanks, Monica. During the hearing, witnesses, which included the Superintendent for Allegany County Public Schools in Maryland, discussed the full spectrum of the crisis in schools: students who are addicts themselves, students from homes where parents are addicts and the trauma they experience, and the youngest victims of the epidemic—infants born addicted because of prenatal exposure and the long-term effects on their academic and emotional development. Lawmakers and witnesses highlighted the importance of increased funding for education, including Every Student Succeeds Act Title II funds for professional development and Title IV-A funds which gives districts flexibility to allocate funding for services to help mitigate the crisis. To view the hearing in its entirety, visit the link below. Thanks, Nikki. The Ways and Means Committee, the committee with jurisdiction over taxing and spending in the House, on Monday began debate of the GOP's tax proposal. The bill includes a number of provisions that will impact education. The bill makes it more expensive for students to pursue higher education by: Eliminating the $2,500 student loan interest deduction Eliminating the deduction for tuition waivers provided by education institutions and Consolidating the three higher-education tax credits — the American Opportunity Tax Credit, Lifetime Learning Credit and Hope Scholarship Credit — into one “enhanced” American Opportunity Tax Credit that is worth less than the existing credits The proposal would increase the cost of higher education by $65.5 billion according to estimates provided by Congressional Republicans. The bill would also Eliminate the deduction for State and local income or sales taxes, and cap at $10,000 the allowable deduction for property taxes. Under current law, taxpayers can deduct either their state and local income taxes or their state and local general sales taxes, whichever are higher. Eliminating these tax deductions may put pressure on states to reduce these taxes, thereby reducing the money available to support schools and students. And the bill takes away a modest yet important benefit to classroom teachers by Eliminating the $250 deduction that educators can take for what they spend on supplies. There is a petition being circulated that calls for preserving this educator expense deduction and opposing any tax bill that eliminates it. If you'd like to sign on, visit the link below. Finally, earlier this week, the Alliance partnered with a number of organizations and local leaders to submit comments to the Federal Communications Commission, or FCC, regarding the E-rate program. Since its creation in 1996, E-rate has provided funding to make internet connectivity and other telecommunications services more affordable for schools and libraries. In 2014, the FCC modernized the E-rate program to include support for Wi-Fi infrastructure and services and last month, the FCC requested public comments on the current funding structure, which provides $1 billion annually for Wi-Fi for five years. In response, nearly 200 school and district leaders representing 38 states and more than 50 leading organizations, including the Alliance, sent letters to the FCC to support preserving and continuing the FCC's current commitment of $1 billion annually for Wi-Fi. To read the letters and learn more visit the link below. That's all for now. For an alert when the next episode of federal flash is available, email us at alliance@all4ed.org. Thanks for watching.