In two speeches, first at the America First Policy Institute, and today at the New York Stock Exchange, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) laid out an ambitious policy blueprint for 2025 that should have taxpayers ringing the opening bell. If Republicans gain full control of the government next year, having a clear vision will be paramount to success. And if these policies are all implemented, the economy will be off to the races. Otherwise, differing economic priorities from competing factions could derail the opportunity to inject optimism back into families and the overall economy.
That’s why it’s heartening to see that Speaker Johnson’s plan includes many policies that National Taxpayers Union (NTU) has endorsed in the past. The tax code, energy policy, post-secondary federal funding, and rampant government spending all have huge impacts on Americans’ lives. Improving these components separately will not be as impactful as Speaker Johnson’s cohesive framework. Taken as a whole, this plan would boost economic growth while ensuring that working class families are no longer left behind by the Biden-Harris economy.
Since most voters and small business owners consistently name inflation as their top concern, restoring the 2017 Trump tax cuts, also known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, will be critical to relieving pressure on families’ pocketbooks. Luckily, Speaker Johnson listed this as a top priority in his speeches, providing clarity on what Americans are voting for in November.
These broad-based tax cuts for individuals, families, small businesses, and corporations were incredibly impactful and generated a massive surge in the economy. This meant that nearly everyone had more money in their pockets, leading to consumer confidence, economic optimism and record low unemployment. At the end of 2019, Americans’ sense of financial pressure was at the lowest since the 2008 recession. Restoring these policies and potentially making them permanent would also lead to more confidence for businesses to reinvest in long-term improvements and wages again. Right now, over three-fourths of Americans oppose tax increases in a worrisome economic climate and 72% percent would view letting the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expire as a tax increase. They also agree that this would hurt middle class families, small businesses, consumers, and the overall economy.
In particular, one of the highest-impact components that Speaker Johnson highlighted would be the restoration of the immediate research and development tax deduction. Under current law, businesses must spread out their research and development costs over five years of tax filings. These costs pay for and enable scientists, engineers, and all manner of additional workers to discover the next major product, drug, or new technology. As Speaker Johnson highlights, making the full costs of research and development available in a single year would spur more domestic innovation and lead to more jobs.
Next, a strengthened, but still work-centric, child tax credit as proposed by Speaker Johnson would certainly help improve families’ economic outlook. As NTUF proposed, there needs to be a middle ground between current law and the COVID-era super-credit, which disincentivized work and was a ripe target for fraud. Keeping an earned income requirement will ensure that this tax credit does not fuel unemployment, and avoiding the costly expansion from the COVID-era will ensure that the credit does not break the bank.
With regard to concerns from some corners as to the cost of doubling down on Trump’s tax cuts, Speaker Johnson also includes an NTU-endorsed idea for that, as well. Rather than continuing to subsidize coastal elites’ new electric vehicle purchases or “green home” remodeling projects, the Speaker’s plan would repeal the harmful and regressive Inflation Reduction Act tax credits, which primarily go to wealthy taxpayers. By broad majorities, this idea is also endorsed by voters, with 65% percent saying that some of these tax credits should be eliminated to prevent taxes from increasing.
The importance of education also receives welcome recognition within Speaker Johnson’s plan. Holding universities accountable for spiraling costs will ensure that more middle class Americans can seek the career path for which they are best suited, while also allowing workers who are seeking a mid-career change have as many opportunities as possible. As NTU has noted in the past, unlimited government loans contributed greatly to the current trend of college costs. House Education and Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx’s (R-NC) legislation, the College Costs Reduction Act, is an ideal example of a comprehensive plan to address these issues. Enabling families and students to make better informed decisions on the selection stage and reducing incentives for colleges to balloon costs would address issues on both sides of the problem.
Finally, NTU has long had a reputation for fighting waste, fraud, abuse and excessive spending from the federal government. Speaker Johnson’s final points in his plan deal with these issues by “restoring fiscal sanity” and “rooting out waste, fraud, abuse, and $764 billion in improper payments under Biden-Harris.” In 2023, 60% of Americans said that the government is spending too much, and the continuously rising federal debt should be in the back of the public and lawmakers’ minds this November.
Speaker Johnson has presented a cohesive vision for what a Republican House would pursue next year, and it all sounds like good news for free markets. Similar to his influential policy manifesto, the Conservative Playbook, this vision will serve as a guidepost for conservatives on Capitol Hill. NTU applauds this bold approach to the challenges of 2025 and looks forward to working on all of these issues with Speaker Johnson next year.