Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz has provided a big update after the Republican-controlled U.S. Senate voted 100-0 to pass his “No Tax On Tips Act,” giving President Donald Trump another major legislative win.
Cruz is pushing the bill, which would remove tips from federal income tax and was championed on the campaign trail by Trump.
Cruz said the bill will be voted on in the GOP-controlled House in the coming days and will head to the president’s desk for a signature to make it law. The bill aims to help millions of American workers who depend on tips for a big part of their income.
“President Trump made a promise to the American people that he would eliminate taxes on tips. In Congress, I formed a bipartisan, bicameral coalition to get that done, and in the Senate introduced the No Tax on Tips Act. Today, I went with Senator Rosen to the floor to secure Senate passage of the bill,” Cruz said.
Cruz emphasized the potential impact of the legislation on working-class families: “This legislation will have a lasting impact on millions of Americans by protecting the hard-earned dollars of blue-collar workers, the very people who are living paycheck-to-paycheck. I urge my colleagues in the House to pass this important bill and send it to the President’s desk to be signed into law.”
The “No Tax on Tips Act” says that “cash tips” include checks, cash, credit and debit card charges, and credit and debit card charges. On their federal income tax forms, they can claim a 100% deduction for wages that were paid.
The new version of the bill has specific “guardrails” that are meant to make sure that only workers who are usually tipped will get the exemption.
Cruz wants to cut taxes and create more jobs, which is what this congressional effort is all about.
He was very important in the 2017 tax change that cut taxes for people and companies by a lot, and he has been a strong supporter of making those cuts permanent.
Cruz also played a big role in passing the USMCA trade deal, which he sees as a win for Texas’s industry and agriculture industries. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce gave him the prestigious “Spirit of Enterprise” award for his work to help Texas companies.
Top Democrats like New York Sen. Chuck Schumer and Nevada Sen. Jackie Rosen have praised the measure.
“Nevada has more tipped workers per capita than any other state. So this bill would mean immediate financial relief for countless hard-working families. ‘No Tax on Tips’ was one of President Trump’s key promises to the American people, which he unveiled in my state of Nevada. And I am not afraid to embrace a good idea, wherever it comes from,” Rosen said.
“Working Americans — from servers, to bartenders, delivery drivers, and everything in between — work hard for every dollar they earn and are the ones who deserve tax relief, not the ultra-rich. While President Trump and Republicans push tax breaks for billionaires and stick the middle class with the bill, Senate Democrats are standing strong to protect America’s working families,” Schumer said.
President Trump first announced the policy idea at a Nevada rally last June, at the height of the presidential campaign.
“So, this is the first time I’ve said this, and for those hotel workers and people that get tips, you’re going to be very happy because when I get to office, we are going to not charge taxes on tips, people making tips. We are not going to do it, and we’re going to do that right away, first thing in office because it’s been a point of contention for years and years and years. And you do a great job of service. You take care of people, and I think it’s going to be something that really is deserved,” the Republican said at the rally.
“More importantly, popular or unpopular. I do some unpopular things too if it’s right for the country. I do what’s right. So those people that have jobs in restaurants, whatever the job may be, a tipping job, we’re not going after it for taxes anymore. This will be ended,” Trump said.