Orrin Hatch: “it is no secret that our Tax Code is in dire need of reform. Although there are differences of opinion about how best to…”

“it is no secret that our Tax Code is in dire need of reform. Although there are differences of opinion about how best to fix our Tax Code, I do not think there is anyone in the Chamber who would argue in favor of keeping our current code as it is. As I have said before, I believe there is, for the first time in many years, real momentum to get something done on tax reform this year. The leaders of the tax-writing committees on both sides of the aisle have expressed a desire to move forward on tax reform, and there is real bipartisan support in both the House and the Senate. This is going to be difficult, there is no question about it. It is going to be very hard to form and maintain a coalition in favor of a set of reforms that will simplify the current Tax Code and promote economic growth. It is going to take a lot of hard work and it is going to take people from both parties to get it done. But I think we can succeed. However, last week it was disheartening to hear the chairperson of the Senate Budget Committee talk about the possibility of including instructions for tax reform in a budget reconciliation package. This news was discouraging for a number of reasons. First and foremost, reconciliation, by its very nature, is a partisan process. In the few instances in recent history when reconciliation resulted in legislation, there was bipartisan support at the outset. That simply is not the case with this proposal.…”