Blue Dog introduces tax disclosure bill

Rep. Scott Murphy (D-N.Y.), a member of the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Coalition, plans to introduce legislation requiring the Joint Committee on Taxation to publicly disclose an analysis of each provision in the tax code. 

The bill would provide lawmakers with a process for determining which tax expenditures, like credits or deductions, are achieving their objective and which have become outdated. 

"Government needs to be responsible and transparent with taxpayer dollars," Murphy said in prepared remarks. "This bill will help to shed light on wasteful loopholes and special deals hidden in the tax code." 

Under the bill, the JCT would not only be required to analyze every tax provision for its usefulness, but also gauge its ease of use. In addition, the committee would be charged with preparing a report that would publicly disclose lost revenue through the tax code.