House leaders might soon vote on the final fiscal 2024 minibus. Legislative text for the second and final set of appropriations bills was released early this morning. A Friday vote on the $1 trillion package is possible if the House review period is shortened from 72 hours to less than 48.

Then there’s the Senate. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) has vowed to stall the minibus package, telling The Hill, “We’re bankrupt, and it’s a terrible idea to keep spending money at this rate.” His opposition is largely based on how much the legislation would add to the national debt, now roughly $34.5 trillion.

At least interest rates are steady? After its two-day meeting this week, the Federal Reserve decided to keep the interest rate between 5.25 and 5.5 percent. Officials project three rate cuts in 2024, though financial markets and consumers hope for a more specific timeline. 

IRS Commissioner Werfel to high-wealth tax cheats: Pay your fair share. In an interview with the Associated Press, IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel shared that message with those wrongly deducting private jet travel or otherwise avoiding taxes. That way, “others aren’t shouldering the burden of funding our government.” Next month marks Werfel’s one-year anniversary as IRS Commissioner. 

An IRS agent in Massachusetts has been charged with filing false tax returns. The revenue agent for the Large Business and International Division of the IRS has worked there for more than 17 years. She allegedly filed her tax returns for 2017, 2018, and 2019 with a false Schedule C, claiming business losses for a claimed "import and export" business. She is also alleged to have underreported her income by about $90,000 over the three tax years. 

Georgia’s Senate approves a tax cut. The chamber passed a pair of House-passed bills that would save individuals and businesses about $500 million in income taxes. One bill would speed up a planned $800 million individual income tax cut at an additional cost of $360 million. The other reduces the corporate income tax rate to match the individual rate, at a cost of $176 million in its first full year, and $210 million annually by 2029. Governor Brian Kemp (R) is expected to sign the tax cuts into law.

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