A deal has been reached between Union leaders and the White House about the excise tax. While there is a diary out about this, it was breaking and lacked some of the details now leaking out - so this is posted as an update.
It appears that the Unions did, in fact, gain "small" concessions, but eliminating those making under $200,000 from the excise tax (and therefore keeping to the promise of not taxing the middle class) was not one of them.
In addition, it appears those with bargained health-care benefits will have special exemptions not available to all working-class Americans.
From Greg Sargeant at The Plum Line:
Specifics of Cadillac Tax Deal
Specifics Of "Cadillac" Tax Deal
o Raising the threshold at which family plans are taxed from $23,000 to $24,000 in 2013 for all working families, with annual increases of Consumer Price Index plus one. The threshold for single plans will be $8,900. (Taft Hartley plans will be considered at the family rate.)
o Raising the threshold on plans further if health care costs grow faster than expected from 2010-2013
o Exempting dental and vision costs beginning in 2015 (which could raise the threshold as much as $2000)
o Raising the threshold for plans that have significant numbers of women and/or older workers.
o Preserving the original Senate proposal to raise the threshold for plans with workers in high risk professions, affecting more than 9 million workers.
o Preserving the original Senate proposal that would raise the threshold for plans with retirees age 55 and up.
o Providing transitional relief for employers and workers to adjust to tax:
o Temporarily raising the threshold for high cost states, affecting more than 38
million workers.
o Providing a five year transition window for state and local employee plans and plans negotiated through collective bargaining agreements before they are subject to the tax, as typically done when federal laws affecting workers are enacted so that agreements will not have to be renegotiated.
o The ability for bargaining plans to go into the exchange in 2017.
Evidently, progressive members of the House are not happy with the deal the Unions struck.
White House Wins Labor..
Gerald W. McEntee, head of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, said that progressive members of Congress pushed the unions to fight for more. "There were some people who wanted to continue to fight for no excise tax at all," he said.
The GOP immediately jumped on the agreement, calling it a back-room deal cut to benefit unions. The excise tax had been estimated to raise $150 billion over ten years; the compromise tax will raise $90 billion, said Trumka.
It was reported earlier that the Unions had won a concession to eventually allow all employers in the exchange, but the White House walked that back, and now it appears only bargained plans are allowed into the exchange in 2017.
This is not a good deal for the middle class, as reported thus far, and will cause a rift among workers in the Democratic party.
UPDATED: This could be even far worse than originally thought. It appears the lost revenue created by these "small" concessions may be made up by increasing payroll taxes on the middle class!
According to Think Progress:
Unions-Exemption
The new provisions would reduce the estimated revenue from the excise tax by $60 billion, forcing lawmakers to make-up for the lost revenue by increasing the payroll tax (which would still hit union members) or applying it to investment income.
Call your House representatives. Please tell them NO excise tax on anyone earning less than $200,000.
Update II: Changed the title to better reflect the situation.