Marc Gerson, former tax counsel to the House Committee on Ways and Means, was quoted on the potential for passage of a year-end tax bill addressing legislative priorities for both parties, including tax extenders and a package of retirement changes. With several tax provisions expiring at year-end, the situation is similar to four years ago, when lawmakers passed a wide-reaching year-end legislative tax package, the Protecting Americans From Tax Hikes Act of 2015 (PATH Act). Making the R&D tax credit permanent in 2015 was one of the "main drivers" to passing tax extenders then, and now those provisions expiring at the end of this year could serve a similar purpose, Gerson said, adding that the PATH Act provides "context for this tax package in a number of ways."

"The 2017 and 2018 tax extenders lacked a consensus driver, and that's part of the reason they have been expired for a long time," Gerson said. "The 2019 extenders and the House retirement bill could be the drivers this time around."