Financial advisors and their clients have waited for tax hikes as Congress hammered out provisions for the Build Back Better Act. But the House bill passed in November didn’t include the reforms many expected.
“The biggest takeaway for Build Back Better is the lack of change,” said Jeffrey Levine, a certified financial planner and CPA at Buckingham Wealth Partners in Long Island, New York, speaking at the CNBC Financial Advisor Summit on Wednesday.
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Many wealthy Americans were bracing for higher ordinary income taxes, capital gains levy increases and lawmakers slashing the estate and gift tax exemptions, he said.
“Well, all of that is now out of this bill,” said Levine. “So the big news for many is actually how little might be changing.”
House Democrats in November passed their $1.75 trillion social spending package, including funds for universal pre-K, Medicare expansion, expanded Child Tax Credits and more.
However, Build Back Better is far from done as lawmakers need support from all 50 Democratic Senators to bypass Republican opposition through the reconciliation process.