Companies Face Unwelcome R&D Shift With Biden Plan In Limbo

The delay in passing President Joe Biden’s $2 trillion spending plan means companies won’t get some much-sought tax relief on their research and development costs—at least not yet.

A new, less tax-friendly way for companies to record their R&D costs will go into effect Jan. 1, as scheduled, now that the spending measure has been shelved. A provision in the Biden plan would have pushed back that change to 2026, staying with the current, more tax-favorable approach.

Some companies will see higher tax bills and increased compliance work as a result, and are likely to lobby Congress hard to ...