Jason Smith

House Ways and Means Chair Jason Smith (R-Mo.) relied on a rarely used maneuver during a recent House Ways and Means markup to keep lawmakers united on controversial paid preparer rules years in the making.

The committee unanimously advanced the pared-back legislation, a small piece of a comprehensive bill to regulate dodgy and unethical tax preparers. But taking up the legislation is a shift on a topic long seen by GOP members as a non-starter.

Smith realized “there were problems where the Democrats wouldn’t get on the one bill, and if I took out section two with my amendment, they’d ...