Long Island congressional Republicans hold the line on SALT cap lift as negotiations continue

WASHINGTON — Long Island House Republicans are doubling down on their demand that the massive budget bill backed by President Donald Trump include an increase to the existing $10,000 cap on state and local tax deductions.

They are vowing to block the measure unless more relief emerges from ongoing negotiations.

Reps. Andrew Garbarino (R-Bayport) and Nick LaLota (R- Amityville) rejected a proposal last week to increase the SALT cap to $30,000 as they and other blue-state Republicans demand a higher figure in negotiations over the bill stacked with Trump's legislative priorities. The bill, dubbed by Trump as "one big, beautiful bill," includes a series of tax breaks, a boost in border security spending, and new work requirements for recipients of Medicaid and food stamps. 

House Speaker Mike Johnson — aware that he can only afford to lose three Republican votes in order to pass Trump’s plan in the chamber — has said he is willing to continue negotiating with the coalition of blue-state Republicans, but he must also balance the demands of fiscal conservatives who have been advocating against increases to the SALT cap. 

Johnson (R-La.) has said he hopes to pass the bill by Memorial Day, but the measure was voted down by the House Budget Committee on Friday, after five conservatives sided with Democrats. The Republicans who voted against moving the bill forward argued it does not slash enough federal spending, but those who voted in favor argued the 1,116-page bill should be passed out of committee while negotiations on a final version of the bill continue.

Garbarino and LaLota were part of a group of so-called "SALTy Republicans" who huddled with Johnson on Tuesday evening and Thursday morning to press for an increase beyond a proposed $30,000 cap for households earning $400,000 or less that was passed by the House Ways and Means Committee on Wednesday.

LaLota and Garbarino said because of the nature of negotiations they could not disclose what dollar amount they are shooting for, but during negotiations they continue to invoke Trump’s campaign pledge to "get SALT back."

"We have all committed to blocking the bill unless there is a fix on SALT," LaLota told Newsday in a phone interview Friday, referring to the coalition that includes him and Garbarino, and Reps. Mike Lawler (R-Pearl River), Elise Stefanik (R-Schuylerville), Young Kim (R-Calif.), and Tom Kean (R- N.J.)

Garbarino said the $400,000 income threshold to qualify for the write-off was also an issue for the group, noting a household earning that amount may be considered wealthy in other parts of the country with lower costs of living, but on Long Island he considered those households "middle income."

"It’s about being fair — we are being taxed on dollars that we're already spending," Garbarino said. "It was the reason why the original deduction was created."

For more than a century, homeowners could write-off the cost of state and local taxes when filing their federal income tax returns, but in 2017 a $10,000 cap was placed on the so-called SALT deductions as part of a Trump-led tax plan that passed the Republican majority Congress. New York lawmakers raised objections at the time, arguing a cap essentially amounted to a double tax burden in states with higher tax rates, but GOP leaders argued the cap was necessary to offset a reduction in tax revenue from other parts of the tax bill, including a reduced corporate tax rate and doubling the standard deduction for most filers. The GOP leaders also argued New York and other blue states should do more to reduce their state budgets and, in turn, lower their state tax rates.

More than 10% of New York tax filers claimed a SALT deduction in 2022, according to the most recent data available compiled by the Bipartisan Policy Center, a Washington, D.C., think tank.

Several of the provisions of the 2017 tax plan, including the SALT cap, are set to expire at the end of the year, prompting the push by congressional Republicans to renew the 2017 plan under a new sweeping bill they aim to pass through a process known as reconciliation, which would allow the bill to pass in the Republican-controlled Senate with a simple majority vote and without the need for crossover Democratic votes.

Long Island’s Democratic House members have encouraged Garbarino and LaLota to continue holding out for a higher number or an outright repeal.

Rep. Tom Suozzi (D- Glen Cove), who from 2019 to 2021 sponsored bills to raise and repeal the cap that were passed by the House before being scuttled in the Senate, said "it’s not easy" to take on party leadership.

"They've got guts to do that, and I think if they stick it out, they will succeed," Suozzi told Newsday in a phone interview.

Rep. Laura Gillen (D-Rockville Centre), who in January cosponsored legislation with Garbarino and Suozzi to fully repeal the cap, said the $30,000 figure does not offer sufficient relief to homeowners on Long Island.

"This is not some boon to super wealthy folks. This has a real direct impact on the bottom line for working and middle class families, and they need this tax relief," Gillen said, adding she urged the New York House Republicans to "stay strong."

The SALT-minded members of Congress have faced increasing pressure from other House Republicans to relent on their fight for a larger cap, with many of the red state Republicans describing the state and local tax deduction as a carve-out for wealthy homeowners in coastal states.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), in a series of Wednesday social media posts aimed at Lawler, said if the $30,000 deduction "isn’t good enough for those making under $400,000 then you need to either vote Republican in NY or you need to move!"

Rep. Max Miller (R-Ohio), in a video posted on X, urged the New York lawmakers to "just say yes" to the proposed bill with the $30,000 cap, calling the SALT deduction "nothing more than a bailout for the wealthy coastal elites on either side of the country."

LaLota and Garbarino said they are constantly reminding other lawmakers that New York is a so-called "donor state," whose taxpayers send more money to Washington than the state receives back in federal funding.

Trump, who has said he hopes both chambers pass the bill by July 4, took to social media on Friday to urge Republicans to act fast.

He wrote: "Republicans MUST UNITE behind, 'THE ONE, BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL!'"

By Laura Figueroa Hernandez

laura.figueroa@newsday.com@Laura_Figueroa

Laura Figueroa Hernandez is the White House correspondent and previously covered New York City politics and government. She joined Newsday in 2012 after covering state and local politics for The Miami Herald.