By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
Thursday, November 16, 2017 the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act by a vote of 227 to 205. The Tax Cut and Jobs Act is the first major overhaul of our nation’s tax code since 1986.
Congressman Gary Palmer (R-Hoover) released a statement after voting in favor of the bill.
“My colleagues and I took a significant step towards providing American families much needed and meaningful tax relief,” said Palmer. “The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act lowers rates for individuals and families and makes much needed changes designed to spur the type of sustained economic growth that will benefit every American. The American people have been waiting over three decades for this kind of reform and I hope that my colleagues in the Senate will move quickly so that we can reconcile differences and make improvements in order to deliver on the promise of tax reform to the American people.”
“One of the primary reasons I ran for Congress was to have the opportunity to help make major reforms that help American families and that help make our nation more secure, more prosperous and on a path to fiscal stability. Throughout this process our focus has been on lowering rates for taxpayers, making sure American corporations can compete in the world economy, cutting taxes and red tape to promote small business startups and help them grow, and making our tax code simpler and predictable to promote more investment. These are the essentials that will lead to vibrant and sustainable economic growth and that will put more money in people’s paychecks.”
“While we are excited about what we are doing with this bill, our tax reform effort is not a ‘one and done’. We will continue to work year-after-year to ensure that our tax code works for the American economy and works for all Americans.”
Congressman Bradley Byrne (R-Montrose) said: “We took a historic step today toward giving hardworking Americans a long overdue tax cut. Just as important, our tax reform legislation will help make the American economy boom again, leading to greater economic growth and higher wages. Today was about fulfilling a key prong of President Trump’s agenda and making life better for families in Southwest Alabama and across the country.
“I truly hope the Senate does not let us down yet again. They should pass a tax reform bill, and let’s get the job done,” Byrne said.
Byrne said that H.R. 1, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, includes a number of a reforms designed to benefit the American people and grow the economy: it lowers tax rates for everyday Americans; stops American jobs from moving overseas; increases the standard deduction; eliminates special-interest deductions; preserves the adoption tax credit; repeals the Death Tax; establishes a new Family Credit to help with the cost of raising children or non-child dependents; maintains deduction for charitable contributions; preserves the home mortgage interest deduction; lowers the corporate tax rate to 20 percent; reduces the tax rate on hard-earned business income of Main Street job creators to no more than 25 percent; provides a new, low tax rate of 9 percent for businesses earning less than $75,000 in income; and allows businesses to immediately write off the full cost of new equipment.
Byrne said that you can learn more about the tax reform plan online at FairAndSimple.gop.
Byrne delivered a speech on the House floor in support of the tax reform legislation.
Byrne told Congres, “By making our tax code more competitive, we can unleash our full economic potential, bring jobs back to America, raise wages, and ultimately get more money in the pockets of working Americans. Mr. Speaker, this is exactly what President Trump promised and what the American people sent him to Washington to do.
“Now, my colleagues on the other side like to say this bill helps the 1% and they vehemently defend the current tax code,” Rep. Byrne said. “You know who benefits from the current code? The 1%. People who can hire lawyers and lobbyists to help them get a special tax break. People who can spend thousands of dollars a year on specialty accountants. If you want to help the 1%, then keep the current, complicated, and confusing tax code that only helps the elite and well-connected. We can do better than that.”
Congresswoman Martha Roby (R-Montgomery) said, “I have great news for everybody who wants lower taxes: The House has passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act – our historic plan to reform the federal tax code and give Americans much-needed tax relief,” Roby said. “My top priority when it comes to tax reform is making sure those I represent benefit. A few thousand extra dollars in the budget can go a long way, and I believe families know how to spend their money better than the federal government does.”
H.R. 1 passed the House by a vote of 227-205. The Senate is currently working on its own version of a tax relief bill.
