9 Things You Need to Know About the Republican Tax Overhaul

By Samuel Smith, Deputy Managing Editor Thursday, December 21, 2017

Credit reporting company Equifax Inc. corporate offices are pictured in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S., September 8, 2017. | REUTERS/Tami Chappell

6. Corporate tax rate slashed

One of the biggest victories for Republicans in the bill is that corporate tax rates will be decreased by about 14 percentage points — from 35 percent to 21 percent.

According to The Atlantic, the bill not only cuts taxes for business owners, it also allows companies to write off expensive equipment purchases and buildings.

"The true benefits of lower corporate tax rates come because corporations will anticipate being able to keep more of what they earn. This expectation of a larger payoff from each dollar invested will motivate them to invest more, and the investment will contribute to faster economic growth," Tracy Miller, senior policy research editor with the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, wrote in an op-ed for The Hill.

"More specifically, public corporations employ a substantial percentage of Americans, so how much they are willing to invest determines whether they will hire more people. The top statutory corporate tax rate in the United States, at 39.1 percent (including both federal and state taxes), is higher than that of any other developed country."