The AICPA President and CEO Mark Koziel, CPA, CGMA, stated that the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (BBB) is “a win for millions of businesses, taxpayers, and tax practitioners across the country.” Koziel continued, “No bill is perfect—however, there are many beneficial tax provisions in this bill that I believe support the business community and will help grow our economy. . .”[1]
President Trump did not get his way entirely but, everyone will benefit from the Big Beautiful Bill (BBB) except for Democratic Grifters, NGOs, illegal aliens & criminals, and the Deep State, along with those who profit from the waste, fraud and abuse within the federal government.
With the passage of the BBB, the Democrats will continue to lose their funding from the Deep State apparatus and the related kickbacks—fraud & abuse— from unaccountable NGOs at an accelerated pace, under the relentless supervision by the Trump Administration.
The BBB is a monstrous 900 plus pages and could be considered a full employment act for attorneys and accountants. Below are just a few of the tax provision details—tax reductions that benefit ALL taxpayers—which NOT one Democrat voted for!
In my opinion, there are two provisions of the BBB that are the most important. First and foremost is the permanent extension of Trump’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCLA), which would have expired at the end of 2025, resulting in the largest tax increase in history—based upon dollar impact and breadth of taxpayers affected—touching nearly every income group. By voting against the BBB, every Democrat voted for the largest tax increase in history!
For 2025, the federal estate and gift tax exemption is $13.99 million per individual and the so-called “experts” were wrong, believing that this exemption would expire in 2026, dropping to around $7 million per person. Under the BBB, the exemption is made permanent and will rise to $15 million per individual or $30 million for married couples in 2026, adjusted annually for inflation. So, you might be wondering how this provision benefits you if your estate or net worth is substantially less than $7 million… maybe only $500,000 or less.
Although the permanent increase of the estate and gift tax exemption primarily benefits wealthy families, there are some indirect ways it will ripple out to support the poor and middle classes. The exemption makes it much easier for owners to pass down family businesses without triggering large tax bills, which will preserve jobs and encourage long-term investment in local economies. There will also be an increased demand for estate planning services, increasing the demand for legal, financial, and tax planning services creating jobs in those sectors, which would benefit middle-class professionals like accountants, attorneys, paralegals, and advisors.
In addition, wealthy individuals may be more inclined to make large charitable gifts, especially through trusts, which can fund nonprofits that serve lower-income communities. Finally, if wealthy individuals retain more after-tax wealth, they tend to invest more in businesses, real estate, and consumer spending, stimulating broader economic activity; and as President Trump would say, this exemption will help Make America Wealthy Again!
For those of you who subscribe to our DRIP strategy and currently have estates or a net worth substantially less than the estate and gift tax exemption, this exemption will ultimately allow you to pass-on generational wealth. As finance professors Rubin and Spaht concluded from their studies, “For those investors who adopt ten and fifteen year horizons, the dividend investment strategy [DRIPs] will lead to financial independence for life. Regardless of the direction of the market, a constant and growing dividend is a never-ending income stream.” By purchasing a DRIP stock, you are buying an investment that “pays you to own it!”
What did the Democrats do… they voted to destroy small businesses, family farms and ranchers!
In addition to permanently extending his tax cuts put in place during his first term under the TCJA, President Trump campaigned on: (1) No Tax on Tips; (2) No Tax on Overtime; (3) No Tax on Social Security; (4) Car Loan Interest Deduction; and (5) dropping the Corporate Tax Rate from 21% to 15% for businesses that produce their products in the United States. Unfortunately, Congress forced him to compromise on these promises as indicated below:
(1) No Tax on Tips: The BBB provides a temporary deduction (2025 through 2028) limited to $25,000 for qualified tips received by an individual in an occupation that customarily and regularly receives tips. The deduction of up to $25,000 phases out when the taxpayer’s modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) exceeds $150,000 or $300,000 when a joint return is filed.
(2) No Tax on Overtime: The temporary above-the-line deduction (2025 through 2028) is limited to $12,500 or $25,000 for a joint return, phases out when the taxpayer’s MAGI exceeds $150,000 or $300,000 if a joint return is filed. In addition, there are strict rules regarding the requirement that the Employer report “qualified overtime compensation” separately on Form W-2 or Form 1099, which may be a real problem for many small employers, who may curtail overtime to avoid the additional administrative costs of compliance; other employers and employees may not even know or understand the reporting requirements. In addition, certain occupations like air-traffic controllers and oil rig workers, whose incomes are substantially based upon overtime, may not benefit at all.
(3) No Tax on Social Security: Rather than eliminating taxes on social security, there appears to be a temporary deduction (2025 through 2028) of $6,000 for taxpayers who are age 65 and older, which is phased out when MAGI exceeds $75,000 or $150,000 if a joint return is filed.
(4) Car Loan Interest Deduction: It is only temporarily available (2025 through 2028) if you acquired the vehicle after December 31, 2024, and is phased out for taxpayers with MAGI more than $100,000 or $200,000 for married couples filing jointly. If you qualify, the maximum deduction, if you itemize, is capped at $10,000 for passenger vehicles that are assembled in the United States.
(5) Dropping Corporate Tax Rate to 15%: President Trump wanted to reduce the 21% corporate tax rate down to 15% for those businesses that produce their products and provide services within the United States. Unfortunately, because of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) static scoring—CBO’s projections have never been right and ought to be abolished—Congress increased the corporate tax rate to 25%. However, the added provisions for Capital Investment and Depreciation, the expensing of Research & Development costs, and Manufacturing-Specific Tax Relief, “will help grow our economy” and be “a win for [many] businesses . . . across the country.”
There is so much left to unpack or evaluate regarding individual income tax provisions, business tax provisions, international provisions, administrative and excise tax provisions, and the elimination of clean energy incentives. In addition, the BBB included sweeping funding increases and an historic increase in the debt ceiling to include the following:
Defense & Military: $150 million increase to the Department of Defense
Immigration Enforcement: Over $170 billion allocated to (1) ICE detention expansion of $45 billion; (2) Border Wall construction - $46 billion; (3) Deportation Operations - $14 billion; and (4) Funding for 10,000 new ICE agents.
Air Traffic Control Modernization - $12.5 billion
Child Tax Credit: Permanently increased to $2,200 for over 40 million families
Coast Guard & Arctic Security: $25 million for infrastructure and new vessels
Radiation Exposure Compensation: Renewed funding for the existing program
Small Business Relief: Permanent tax deductions and increased spending caps
The BBB raised the debt ceiling by $5 trillion, the largest increase in U.S. history. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates the BBB will add $3.3 to $3.9 trillion to the national debt over the next decade. The CBO uses static scoring and has never been anywhere near accurate with their projections! Under their static scoring model, they assume tax reductions decrease revenue dollar-for-dollar when history has proven that the government’s revenue increases when taxes are lowered. In addition, the CBO did not consider any increase in business investment and did not consider the increased revenue from tariffs.
Under a dynamic scoring model, the tax reductions will increase revenue, deregulation will increase revenue, business investment from incentivized international and U.S. businesses will increase revenue, increased energy production will increase revenue, selling federal government assets & reduction of the Deep State will increase revenue & decrease federal expenses, the deportation of illegal & criminal aliens will ultimately reduce the federal deficit, reduction of federal aid to foreign governments will reduce the deficit, the elimination of waste, fraud & abuse will reduce the federal deficit, and tariffs will increase revenue. President Trump has done so much in less than six-months that I have probably missed something else that will either increase federal revenue or decrease federal expenditures, thereby reducing the annual deficit even more. Trump’s goal is to eliminate the annual deficit and start paying down the debt, primarily through growth and the elimination of waste, fraud and abuse.
The debt ceiling increase of $5 trillion is needed temporarily until everything that President Trump is doing kicks-in. It’s a win-win for America!
Stay tuned, there will likely be several more tax reduction bills forthcoming over the next several years. President Trump wants to abolish the IRS and eliminate the income tax and replace it with tariffs. Details can be found in my book, The Case for Trump’s Tariffs and the Elimination of the Federal Income Tax.
President Trump has only just begun to Make America Great Again despite the strong opposition by “The Democratic Party [that] Hates America.” May he succeed and keep this 249-year experiment in individual freedom and private property rights alive!
Dum Spiro Spero—While I breathe, I hope.
Slàinte mhath,
Robert (Mike) G. Beard Jr., C.P.A., C.G.M.A., J.D., LL.M.
[1] Alistair M. Nevius, JD, Tax Provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, June 29, 2025, Updated July 4, 2025. Much of the information regarding specific tax issues in this blog was taken from this article posted by the AICPA. Mr. Nevius’ article consisted of more than 7-pages of very small font size; almost needed a magnifying glass to read it!