Now, Washington is considering changing those rules as part of a $1.5 trillion tax package moving through Congress, targeting for elimination provisions that people like Ms. Vause, Mr. Kepley and Mr. Flanagan relied on to make what they believed were financially responsible decisions.
In ways large and small, the tax bills moving through Congress could penalize individuals for choices they made based on longstanding law. Left unchanged, the bills could drastically alter the financial situations of millions of Americans who cannot easily undo those decisions.
People who took out student loans did so knowing they could deduct the interest payments on that debt. Graduate students who accepted tuition waivers did so knowing they would not have to pay taxes on that benefit. Families who moved to high-tax states so their children could attend good public schools did so knowing they could deduct the state and local taxes paid.
But the tax bills, particularly the House version of the legislation, would rescind or scale back some of those preferences, resulting in a tax increase for many students, older adults and others who itemize their taxes and make use of many of the deductions that have long been a staple of the tax code.
On Wednesday, Republican lawmakers said they had reached a deal on a consensus version of the bill, which could head to a final vote next week. While official details were not released, a congressional aide said the medical expense deduction and the graduate tuition waiver tax break were likely to be preserved.
Still, those watching the debate said that longstanding tax provisions were on the chopping block at all showed the peril of making financial decisions based on the tax code.
