"It is hard to say with any level of confidence until we see a final plan (for tax cuts) what really are the benefits to the (economic) outlook," said Sam Bullard, senior economist at Wells Fargo in Charlotte, North Carolina.
"If we don't get one, clearly there would be a response (from the financial markets) to a failure to not pass some kind of tax legislation. But if we get it, it would support the 'glass half full' levels of sentiment we have seen."
In the meantime, most respondents did not expect the core PCE price index, the Federal Reserve's preferred gauge of inflation, to reach the central bank's target until the second quarter of 2019.
At last measure, it was no higher than it was just before the Fed first started raising interest rates from zero nearly two years ago.
The poll still showed the Fed raising rates by 25 basis points more to 1.25-1.50 percent in December, with two increases next year - less than the three the central bank is projecting.
Unlikely Recession
While there are few signs of any economic slowdown in broad economic data, the current cycle is mature. Movements in the U.S. government bond market have grabbed attention in recent weeks as well, suggesting some kind of slowdown may be at hand.
Two-year U.S. Treasury yields have hit a nine-year high on expectations for higher interest rates, but a weak inflation outlook has pushed the yield curve to its flattest in a decade.
The gap between two-year and 10-year yields contracted to just above 63 basis points on Thursday. That was the tightest since November 2007, not long before the last recession took hold.
While the current yield curve is not inverted, which is often viewed as a recessionary warning sign, it has flattened by more than 60 basis points in less than a year.