The U.S. House of Representatives narrowly passed a GOP-backed federal tax bill on Thursday, May 22, that increased the cap on the deduction on state and local taxes to $40,000, extended tax cuts approved during the first Trump administration and made changes expected to reduce Medicaid funding by $740 billion.
Republicans are touting the bill as a cost-saving win, while Democrats criticize it for the potential harm it could cause millions of Americans.
“The partisan budget bill, proffered and passed without accepting any bipartisan input, dramatically raises costs and our national debt by trillions of dollars and fails the American people,” U.S. Rep. Laura Gillen (D-NY), who represents the South Shore’s 4th District, said. “…This bill, drafted behind closed doors and debated in the dead of night, is fiscally irresponsible and does great harm to the American people.”
The bill was passed early Thursday, May 22, by just one vote, 215-214. All House Democrats and two Republicans voted against it.
New York Republicans who advanced the legislation are U.S. Rep. Nick LaLota, who represents Long Island’s 1st District, and U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler, who represents the 17th Disrict in the Hudson Valley. U.S. Rep. Andrew Garbarino, who represents Long Island’s 2nd District. was not present for the vote. House Speaker Mike Johnson said Gabariono had fallen asleep.
The tax bill is being described as a victory for President Donald Trump, who pushed for its passage.
U.S. Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY, who represents the North Shore’s 3rd District) condemned the bill for continuing tax cuts for the wealthiest, cutting health insurance for millions, increasing the federal deficit by an estimated $4 trillion, and not adequately restoring the SALT deduction.
The tax bill notably increases the SALT deduction cap from $10,000 to $40,000 for households earning less than $500,000 annually.
In 2017, under the first Trump administration, Congress enacted a $10,000 cap on the SALT deduction, which permits taxpayers to deduct state and local taxes from their federal taxes.
All eyes were on New York Republicans leading up to the passage of the tax bill. The president and within their party were pressuring them as they resisted previous proposals of lower SALT caps.
Murmurings of a SALT deal to secure Republican support were made Wednesday, the day before the bill was passed in the House.
Some Republicans, like LaLota, touted the $40,000 cap as a win because it was greater than the original cap of $30,000 recommended under the bill.
“Securing this deal took months of pressure, standing firm, and refusing to settle,” said LaLota. “I meant what I said: No SALT, no deal—for real. That wasn’t a slogan—it was a promise to Suffolk County families. And today, we delivered.”
LaLota, who had introduced the SALT Fairness and Deficit Reduction Act that would raise the cap to a greater $60,000, touted the new SALT deal.
“This was a years-long battle, and I’m proud my colleagues finally came around to a plan that fixes the unfair $10,000 cap from 2017,” LaLota said. “Raising it to $40,000 means 92% of the families I represent will finally be made whole. For too long, Suffolk County’s middle class has been punished by double taxation. That ends now.”
However, New York Republicans were criticized by some for failing to restore the full SALT deduction after many had campaigned on this.
“After months of grandstanding on SALT, Nick LaLota caved to party leadership and betrayed his constituents,” said House Majority PAC spokesperson Katarina Flicker. “He broke his promise to cut taxes for New York’s 1st district—and come November 2026, he’ll be the one paying the price.”
The day before the bill was passed, Suozzi and Gillen testified in front of the House Rules Committee, demanding an $80,000 cap. Suozzi called this a compromise from Democrats’ previous request that it be uncapped.
Gillen criticized Trump for falsely stating he would bring SALT back during the 2024 campaign, and the Republican majority for blocking her amendment to eliminate the SALT cap. Gillen’s amendment was backed by 16 other representatives, including Suozzi.
“Instead of ending this unfair double taxation, Republicans extended it,” Gillen said.
The bill includes tax cuts for individuals and businesses, seen as an expansion of Trump’s 2017 tax cuts and additional promises he made in his 2024 campaign, as well as removing taxes on gun silencers, $46.5 billion for southern border wall construction, billions of dollars more for various other immigration crackdown initiatives, $150 billion for national security, including for a missile defense shield coined the “Golden Dome for America,” tax increases on university endowments, overhauling of federal student loans, and a new “Trump” child savings account.
Other aspects of the bill include reduced federal spending for food assistance programs, increasing the work requirement for food aid from 54 to 64, removing food aid work exemptions for parents, adding a new work requirement for Medicaid and a prohibition on Medicaid funds to go to Planned Parenthood procedures.
According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, the Medicaid changes will eliminate healthcare for about 8.6 million people over the next decade.
The federal tax bill is slated to face the Senate next. If approved, it will then be delivered to the president to sign. Changes to the bill are expected when it is addressed by the Senate.
