ABOVE: U.S. President Joe Biden (C) gives Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) (L) the pen he used to sign The Inflation Reduction Act with Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) and House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC) in the State Dining Room of the White House August 16, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Local Congressional leaders cast key votes that led to passage of bill that will reduce the deficit, lower health-care costs, and fight climate change
With the stroke of his pen, President Joe Biden signed a historic piece of landmark legislation into law during a small ceremony in the State Dining Room of the White House, that the Biden-Harris administration states will reduce the deficit, lower health-care costs, ensure corporations pay their fair share of taxes, and fight climate change.
“Let me say from the start, with this law, the American people won, and the special interests lost,” President Biden told the attendees at the White House, who cheered ecstatically.
The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 serves as a much-needed injection in the political arm of President Biden, who has seen his overall approval rating plummet since taking office.
Fortunately for President Biden, he was able to get the House and Senate Democrats to push the $739 billion legislation through Congress to his desk, although it is significantly lower than the initial 10-year, $3.5 trillion proposal he presented to his Democratic colleagues.
In that initial proposal, which was inevitably stifled by Senator Joe Manchin (D-West Virginia), President Biden wanted expanded Medicare benefits, free prekindergarten, paid family and medical leave, less restrictive immigration criteria, and a few other things. The bill eventually passed along party lines, after Sen. Manchin and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer came to an accord after months of negotiations.
Both senators were present at the President’s signing ceremony.
The Inflation Reduction Act limits out-of-pocket drug expenses for senior citizens on Medicare to $2,000 annually and allows Medicare to negotiate with drugmakers on prescription prices. The price of insulin is also capped at $35 per month for Medicare enrollees. The legislation sets aside $369 billion towards energy and climate projects, where the administration hopes to reduce carbon emissions by 40% in 2030.
The Inflation Reduction Act also incentivizes consumers who purchase technology that lowers emissions and energy prices, while dedicating $9 billion in consumer home energy rebate programs; a $4,000 consumer tax credit to purchase used electric vehicles; and a $7,500 tax credit to buy new clean vehicles, exclusively for low- and middle-income individuals. It also sets a minimum 15% corporate minimum tax rate for most large corporations that make more than $1 billion each year, and it provides $80 billion in funding to the IRS, allowing the agency to hire thousands of agents and upgrade their technology that is severely outdated.
Of course, no Republicans supported the bill in the House or Senate and expressed their disappointment in the bill’s signing through a statement.
“With the stroke of a pen, Joe Biden will guarantee congressional Democrats’ careers will come to an end,” Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said in a released statement. “Biden and Democrats raised taxes on hardworking Americans and gave $80 billion to the IRS to hire 87,000 new IRS agents. Americans will never forget that Biden and Democrats raised taxes during a recession.”
The Democratic delegation seems to have clearly saw the handwriting on the wall, and knew it needed to do something about the ever-growing plea from the American people to address inflation and the money matters that are impacting them daily.
As a matter of fact, according to a June survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, nearly 4 in every 10 American citizens indicated that their Personal finances/Cost of living (44%) and Inflation (40%) and were the two most important issues they believed the U.S. government should work on and address within the next year.
That feedback is telling, especially considering that all other choices on the survey, while important, didn’t garner over 30% from respondents.
Those other choices included: Gun issues (30%), Politics (29%), Health care {excluding COVID-19} (24%), Immigration (24%), Foreign policy (23%), Abortion/women’s rights (22%), Education (20%), Climate change/Environment (17%), and the lowest being COVID-19 (4%).
These survey results seem to have served as a true wake-up call for the Biden-Harris administration and lawmakers, as it relates to what matters most to the American people leading up to the November midterm elections in less than three months.
According to reports, U.S. inflation hit an all-new high in June, as the consumer price index rose to 9.1% over the past year, making it the biggest yearly increase in America since 1981.
A lot of this can be attributed to surging gas prices, higher energy costs, increased transportation costs, soaring food costs, out-of-control rent, increased housing expenditures, and many other things that have been putting America at risk for another potential recession.
Sadly, many of the underserved and low-income African Americans in this country have shouldered the brunt of these uncontrollable costs and have been desperately in need of some financial relief as they pinch pennies trying to keep up with the inflation.
Young people, especially college students are also impacted.
Inflation has caused colleges to raise tuition for the 2022-2023 school year by as much as 5%, according to experts.
According to a new survey by Intelligent.com, a leading online source for college students, 1 in 4 of the college students surveyed stated that an increase of that magnitude on their tuition will cause them to be forced to drop some or all their classes. More than 1 in 3 of the college students surveyed stated that they would have to reduce their spending on food to compensate and 24% of them stated that they would have to take out more student loans.
The Biden-Harris administration and lawmakers hope the details of the bill will significantly help the American people who desperately need it and put American families first.
Democratic Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee (TX-18), who touts helping contribute to the writing of the Inflation Reduction Act, said the funds from the legislation could help areas in the Greater Houston area who have historically been impacted by environmental issues.
“These millions of dollars out of $60 billion and $3 billion can come to Houston and have a metamorphic, a seismic change,” said Congresswoman Jackson Lee.
Congressman Al Green (TX-09), who voted in favor of the bill’s passage, stated that the Inflation Reduction Act will reduce the amount of out-of-pocket money each person spends on healthcare and energy costs plus reduce inflation, and will help the U.S. address climate change and hold large corporations accountable by making them pay a fair income tax rate.
“The Inflation Reduction Act’s healthcare provision does several things to reduce rising costs for consumers,” Congressman Green stated. “It reduces out of out-of-pocket costs by placing a $2,000 yearly price cap on prescription drugs and a $35 monthly price cap on insulin costs for Medicare beneficiaries. This bill also reduces the price of medications by allowing Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices with pharmaceutical companies. Additionally, the Inflation Reduction Act will continue to reduce healthcare costs for three more years for Obamacare health insurance plans, which would otherwise expire by the end of this year.”
Congressman Green continued, “The Inflation Reduction Act will reduce high energy costs while lowering pollution by promoting the use of clean energy goods. It offers tax incentives for home efficiency improvements such as rooftop solar panels and water heaters, as well as a tax credit of up to $7,500 for the purchase of new electric vehicles. Finally, this bill places a 15% corporate minimum tax on billion-dollar corporations (corporations making more than $1 billion), with no new taxes for families making $400,000 or less annually. I am pleased that my colleagues and I were able to come together to pass this bill, which will address some of the most pertinent issues America is currently facing.”
Another key component of the bill includes several key provisions to lower the prices of prescription drugs.
AARP Texas thanked Congressman Jackson Lee, Congressman Green, and other U.S Representatives from the Texas delegation for supporting this legislation, as they believe it will bring real relief for senior citizens.
The Inflation Reduction Act includes key AARP priorities that they believe will go a long way to lower drug prices and out-of-pocket costs, such as: finally allowing Medicare to negotiate the price of drugs; capping annual out-of-pocket prescription drug costs in Medicare Part D ($2,000 in 2025); holding drug companies accountable when they increase drug prices faster than the rate of inflation; and capping co-pays for insulin to no more than $35 per month in Medicare Part D.
Jo Ann Jenkins, AARP Chief Executive Officer, stated that this is a momentous win for older Americans and serves as critical legislation that will bring real relief for senior citizens.
“By passing the Inflation Reduction Act, Congress has made good on decades of promises to lower the price of prescription drugs,” said Jenkins. “Seniors should never have to choose between paying for needed medicine or other necessities like food or rent, and tens of millions of adults in Medicare drug plans will soon have peace of mind knowing their out-of-pocket expenses are limited every year.”
President Biden plans to hold another major gathering to celebrate the legislation on September 6th, which is when lawmakers are slated to return to Washington D.C.