Tax Reform
General Overview
Transamerica actively advocates on a variety of corporate and product-related tax issues before the House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee. Many of our life insurance, annuity, employee benefit, retirement, and asset management products are directly tied to the federal tax code so it's important we share our views on any regulatory or legislative proposals that would impact them and, by implication, our policyholders, annuitants, customers, plan sponsors or plan participants.
Budget Reconciliation Legislation
Transamerica actively lobbied along with the
American Council of Life Insurers and industry peers for inclusion of a “tax
stabilization” provision in the budget reconciliation legislation to calibrate
two industry specific revenue raising provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
so that if the corporate tax rate was increased, those revenue raisers would be
adjusted accordingly. When the budget reconciliation legislation was changed in the Senate to include a corporate minimum tax of 15% instead of a corporate rate increase, Transamerica quickly expressed our concerns with the unintended consequences of such a proposal (e.g. the possible inclusion of unrealized gains in our bond portfolio as taxable income) and helped facilitate a colloquy between Senators that insurers' "other comprehensive income" should not be included in the calculation of book income. Transamerica will remain actively involved - and vocal - concerning tax proposals impacting our industry to pay for unrelated policy proposals.
Looking Forward
Transamerica will continue to anticipate and respond to tax proposals that would adversely impact our customers, our products, our company and our industry, including proposals to: increase the corporate tax rate; limit corporate deductions and exclusions; create a financial transactions tax; create a "wealth tax" to tax unrealized gains of some taxpayers; tax life insurance proceeds; limit the size of life insurance and annuity products; and more.
