By Ovunc Kutlu
NEW YORK (AA) - President Donald Trump’s administration and Republican leaders have given up a pursuit of a controversial border adjustment tax that would place duty on imports of American companies, according to a White House statement Thursday.
"While we have debated the pro-growth benefits of border adjustability, we appreciate that there are many unknowns associated with it and have decided to set this policy aside in order to advance tax reform," a joint statement said.
The statement was issued by House Speaker Paul Ryan, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady.
The border adjustment tax reform proposed to increase taxes on imported goods of the U.S. companies. But, many firms and retailers were against the proposal, saying higher taxes would hurt consumers.
Ryan and Brady argued the tax would prevent firms from moving their operations overseas and help prevent a rise in the budget deficit if corporate taxes are lowered.
The Trump administration and Republicans said they would continue to prepare a comprehensive tax reform that would lower taxes on corporations, small businesses and the middle-class.
Legislation is expected to move through Congress this fall, according to the statement.