President Donald Trump Credits Las Vegas Waitress for ‘No Tax on Tips’ Idea
Posted on: April 17, 2026, 02:32h.
Last updated on: April 17, 2026, 02:32h.
- President Trump visited Las Vegas to tout his “No Tax on Tips” policy
- Trump says Americans finally have a president who believes and supports the working middle class
In Las Vegas on Thursday, President Donald Trump revealed how he came up with the idea of lifting federal taxes on tips.
Appearing at the AC Hotel Las Vegas Symphony Park in downtown Las Vegas, Trump explained that it was during a trip to Southern Nevada in 2024 when he was told by a waitress that tips shouldn’t be taxed.
Las Vegas is the birthplace of a little idea known as ‘No Tax on Tips.’ This is the birthplace. A young waitress came up to me during dinner and she said, ‘Sir, we should have no tax on tips.’ I said, ‘That’s the greatest thing I’ve ever heard.’ I walked outside to the fake news media and said, “Ladies and gentlemen, there will be no tax on tips. That was it,” Trump revealed.
“Las Vegas is home to the largest concentration of tipped workers anywhere in the country, anywhere in the world, actually,” the president continued. “And thanks to our tax cuts, thousands of Nevada waiters, waitresses, casino dealers, bartenders, bellmen, barbers, caddies — boy do I love those caddies — and valets received the biggest tax refunds of their entire lives.”
Tax Immunity Limited to $25,000
The No Tax on Tips provision was a component of Trump and the Republicans’ One Big Beautiful Bill, which the president signed into law on July 4, 2025. The law allows tipped workers to retain 100% of their tips, up to $25,000, before being considered as taxable income.
The IRS won’t tax a worker’s first $25,000 in tips for the federal tax years of 2025 through 2028. The provision would then need to be extended by Congress.
Then-Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate for the 2024 election, said she too would support eliminating federal taxes on tips. Trump called his challenger a “copycat.”
During his stop in Las Vegas, Trump thanked Nevadans for delivering him the Silver State, though he said “the competition wasn’t the toughest.”
Americans finally have the kind of president who believes in them. I believe in rewarding you for the great work you’ve done, the great job you’ve done, and for having to suffer for four years of embarrassment. Our country was an embarrassment,” Trump declared.
“All over the world, they laughed at us. They’re not laughing anymore,” Trump continued.
Gambling Deductions Not Addressed
Another OBBB provision that stands to greatly impact Nevada and the casino and gambling industries as a whole is that deductions for gambling losses were reduced from 100% to 90% against winnings. That means a person who wins $100,000 gambling during a year but also loses $100,000 would still need to pay federal taxes on $10,000.
US Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV), who has introduced legislation in Congress to restore the gambling deduction to 100%, took to X to express her frustrations.
“Just imagine, you owe taxes on money you never earned,” Titus said in a video posted to X. “We call that phantom income. That sounds unfair, right? Well, it is, but that’s exactly what’s happening under President Trump’s Big Beautiful BS bill.”
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