WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following statement today on Chairman Baucus’ decision to release tax reform discussion drafts:
“Unfortunately, the bipartisan desire to overhaul our tax code has become mired in the partisan desire by some to raise taxes under the guise of so-called tax reform in the budget conference negotiations. After discussions with my Republican colleagues on the Finance Committee, I told Chairman Baucus that we would prefer to hold off on releasing any discussion drafts until after the budget conference concludes in order to ensure that tax reform doesn’t become a victim of this partisanship.
“While I disagree with the Chairman’s decision today to release these drafts on his own, it is his decision as Chairman to make and one that I respect. My staff worked alongside the Chairman’s for months, but the fact is that significant policy differences remain between both sides and a final agreement was never reached. I hope that once the budget conference negotiations have concluded that we can renew our discussions to determine whether we can find common ground to overhaul our tax code."
