MBA Expresses Concern to Senate Leadership About Section 899 of One Big Beautiful Bill Act

MBA on Wednesday sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) and Senate Finance Committee Chair Mike Crapo (R-ID) outlining its concerns about Section 899 of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

MBA Senior Vice President of Legislative and Political Affairs Bill Killmer said the organization supports the goal of incentivizing foreign governments to reform tax policies that unfairly target American businesses and their employees through Section 899 of the reconciliation legislation. “We also appreciate the inclusion of language in the text released by the Senate Finance Committee regarding the delay in the applicability date of Section 899,” Killmer added.

“While we appreciate the intent of Section 899, we are concerned that without appropriate tailoring, the higher tax rates of the provision, and – even with the delay – the threat of them, will choke important investment and lending in American communities,” Killmer said.

To address the concerns of its members, MBA believes the legislation should:

1. Make clear that the provision preserves the existing portfolio interest exemption and that income currently covered by that exemption is not subject to the Section 899 tax increases,

2. Include specific language in Section 899 that exempts portfolio income from the applicable tax increases, and

3. Make clear that the language added to Section 899 in (2) above excludes from the higher tax rates interest income derived from mortgage loans backed by domestic single family and domestic income-producing properties.