The issue most likely to consume the time and energy of Congress next year is not anything President Biden or former president Donald Trump is talking about during this campaign season. Congress might take up legislation on the campaign flash points of immigration and abortion. But there are budget issues it will definitely have to tackle.
That’s because if Congress does nothing, the law will automatically impose tax increases and spending cuts that neither party wants and that the public would hate. Major provisions of the Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017 — the main legislative accomplishment of Trump’s presidency — expire at the end of 2025. That means that, absent action, tax rates will rise and the standard deduction and the child credit will shrink. Businesses will lose some tax breaks. There will also be automatic tax cuts: The deduction for state and local taxes will expand for high earners, as will the mortgage deduction for people who buy expensive homes