Transcripts For CSPAN Senate Finance Reviews Tax Reform Plan 20171114

Legislation. This is two hours and 40 minutes. I think we better get going. The committee will come to order. Today the committee has before entitled thel bill tax cuts and jobs act. This legislation is enacted would make a number of important reforms to our nation tax system , and relieve the tax burden on american taxpayers with a focus on middleclass families. Todays markup is the combination of u. S. Law tax reform effort. On this committee, both parties have been engaged in this endeavor, which includes the work of multiple chairman from all sides of the aisle. Of most every member and almost every member has participated in this process. Our former chairman was very much engaged in this effort, as was his counterpart on the grassley. Side, sen. Our Ranking Member has done a great deal of work on this ever, both as previous chairman of the committee and as a Longtime Committee member. Others who have served on this committee, and most of those who are now on the committee, have done a great deal of work to advance tax reform. I want to thank all of my colleagues for their work over there over the years to get us to this point. About have more to say individual contributions in the coming days. I want to take a few moments to talk about some of the highlights in the bill that will be before us today at this week. First and foremost, the legislation will provide muchneeded tax relief to American Workers and families. It reduces rates across the board, particularly for those in the middle class who have struggled to get through the past eight years of economic stagnation. It provides substantial benefits parents and families and preserves a number of key elements of our existing tax code. The bill modifies the bracket , seven separate tax brackets, the highest of 38. 5 . There is also an expanded zero tax bracket, meaning more families will see their Tax Liability a limited entirely. Eliminated entirely. Framework well the framework that was released last week provided you are bracket, we found additional rackets held us help does the middle class. Even with additional brackets, the system will be much simpler for the vast majority of taxpayers because the bill nearly double the standard deduction up to 12,000 for individuals, point 4000 for married 24,000 for married couples. This, as i just mentioned, effectively expands the zero tax bracket and reduces the tax burden for millions of families, removing entirely the Tax Liability for many others and eliminating the need to itemized adoptions. According to projections, more than 90 of taxpayers will use the standard deduction under this plan. To around 70 today, which makes the process of taxesing and filing once a much simpler proposition. The bill also expands the Child Tax Credit from 1000 to 1650 lifts incomeally caps. Examplesve a couple of of how this will help. Under our bill, a family of four making the u. S. Median Family Income of around 73,000 per see their federal income tax reduced by more than 40 . In specific dollar terms, that is a reduction of nearly 1500 for a single year. That is about 100. 5 more takehome pay for every month for a single parent making 41,000 per year. They will receive a tax cut of more than 1000, which cuts the overall Tax Liability a little more than half. That is will money that will help tens of millions of American Families make ins meet, save for the future or simply improve their quality of life. Our bill also preserves the mortgage interest induction and the deduction for care for charitable contributions. Those are two really important provisions that may supporters want to keep in place. Weve also got a number of letters and statements from many of our democratic colleagues urging us to maintain a number of other provisions in the current code. For example, i received a letter last week signed by a 16 Senate Democrats urging us to protect existing tax incentives for remote Retirement Savings for American Workers. Bill, in accordance with the urging of these collies, keeps the was popular savings programs, 401 k and retirement accounts, fully in place. Others have weighed in on things like the deduction for medical expenses and adoption tax credit, both of which are unchanged. Weve gotten word from calling about their desire to keep the earned income tax credit where it is, and our bill protects that provision. So far ive only mention the individual reforms in the bill but if you look at the policies ive mentioned, you should notice they represent ideas that both republicans and democrats tend to support. In fact, our Ranking Member produced legislation a few years back that would have significantly drops down individual rates across the board in a fashion similar to the approach outlined in our framework. I might add, it nearly tripled the standard reduction. Standard deduction. It would also have repealed the minimum tax, as would the bill we are debating today. In other respects, that previous legislation is similar to ours, but on the business side our bill is permanently lowering the Corporate Tax rate of 20 . The current 25 Corporate Tax rate is the highest in the industrialized world. It is section 35 , Corporate Tax rate. This is a drag on our economy. One of the few factors companiesly chasing and Economic Activities offshore. If this idea sounds familiar, it should. Members of both parties for years now have called for lowering the Corporate Tax rate, outgnizing that by being so of step with the rest of the industrialized world, we put American Companies and the workers they employ and the customers they serve in a major disadvantage. For example, in this legislation, with former senator coates, senator wyden proposed the Corporate Tax rate be 24 . A few years ago, our Bipartisan Working Group on business tax codes said business taxes should be lower. In fact, that recommendation was the first president the first principle of Business Tax Reform listed in their report to the committee and the senate as a whole. President obama in one of his later budgets proposed reducing Corporate Tax rates to as low as 25 for certain sectors. Lester, president bill clinton, campaign wasifes calling for increased Corporate Taxes, said we should lower corporate rates. He wanted to lower them to be more on par with foreign competitors. Of 20 in ourrate bill, which is slightly below the current average of oecd countries. For passthrough businesses, income is taxed by individual provides ar bill simple Tax Deduction for qualified business income, leaving regular qualified income to be taxed at individual rates. The mechanism involved uses existing provisions of the tax code, which businesses are accustomed to dealing with that have a large body of president behind them. The mechanism provides, from policing against anyone thinking about mischaracterization of one form of income as another in order to unduly lower the tax bill. Our legislation also expands the availability of cash accounting to allow more businesses to simplify their accounting methods. Expensivection 179, expensing for Small Businesses so that they can invest and expand the businesses so they can increase productivity and hire more workers. The bill also provides businesses with full and immediate expensing for new equipment. Again, to enhance productivity, create jobs and grow wages for American Workers. Ourlly, the bill modernizes International Tax system, moving us more toward a territorial tax system. Our current worldwide system is another element of our tax code that chases jobs, Economic Activity and investment out of the United States. In this legislation, american multinationals will be able to bring funds from foreign subsidiaries back into the u. S. Without facing Tax Liability. That means an end to the lockout effect which in turn means more investment, production and Economic Growth right here in america. Which of course translates into more jobs and better wages for taxpayers. Safeguards, our bill also includes provisions to prevent earnings stripping and other practices that arose our tax base that erode our tax base. In 2015, a Bipartisan Group on tax reform cochaired by senator senate and current minority leader ss problems with the current International Tax system and recommended changes entirely consistent with the ones we are proposing today in this legislation. Long story short, our proposed international they are some sort of favor for big companies. All told, the Business Tech proposals in our bill are designed to increase wages, promote the expansion of businesses and of course, create jobs. This bill will modernize our business tax system, finally updating for the 21st century. Thus far, i have only gone over some of that, of the bill. Theres more about the bill to discuss, which we will get to through the course of this markup. I do want to respond in advance to some of the claims we are starting to hear this week about this legislation. There are a number of myths being spread about this bill and what we intend to a published. I want to put some of those to bed now. For example, we will hear a lot about process files today. Were hearing we are rushing it, rushing the bill through the committee. We will also likely hear about bills, with democrats being shut out of the process. He set the record straight on these points. Under no objective standard is this bill being rushed or forced through. This committee, went through either congressional chamber, the committees efforts on tax reform go back years. Let me outline some of the work we have done to lay the groundwork. It was the lead republican on the committee in 2011. In that time stevpan, we have had about 70 tax hearings, most of which involved in depth discussions on how to improve our code. We submitted 21 pages of tax reform recommendations to the socalled supercommittee. This is the start of laying the groundwork. Chairman baucus and i, as part of our blank slate approach in 2013 produced 10 separate bipartisan options papers, discussing concrete policies affecting our tax code. At the end of 2014, i released an extensive report more than 300 pages long discussing in some detail ideas and principles to be discussed. The following year, senator wyden and i oversaw the creation of five separate Bipartisan Working Groups, all of whom produced reports, which provided the foundation with even more hearings. In other words, we have discussed all of these topics at length. Well also be walking through the bill as part of this markup. Theres quite simply no reasonable basis to claim more hearings, more discussion and more deliberation have to take place before we can move forward. Virtually every proposal contained within this bill has been the subject of public debate for many years, working with colleagues in congress and the administration and after the fish in with committee members, weve and consultation with committee members, we have put together this bill. Others believe we should not spend so many years of study and discussion before putting more concrete proposal together. Furthermore, i have personally invited democrats to participate. In this process. On a number of occasions, both publicly and privately. I sat in on our committee in front of cameras and microphones. I asked colleagues to come to the table with objective minds and without preconceived notions. My friends decided it was in their best interest to put preconceived notions on their involvement. Some of those preconceived conditions did shift over time, demandhe later retracted spe that President Trump releases tax reforms before democrats would come to the table. One precondition that never went away was shared by almost every democrat in the senate, the demand that republicans swear off the use of budget reconciliation before anyr real bipartisan discussions take place. 45 democrats signed a letter in that theating public abandonment of aconciliation was in no way reconciliation. Essentially, our colleagues demanded that we empower them to challenge any potential tax reform bill, before they would even begin talks. Thats not the kind of statement we usually hear from 70 who aith o work in godd f that is not the kind of statement we usually hear from somebody who wants to work in good faith towards shared goals. In almost all cases, the bills ended up getting votes from both parties will step reconciliation in no ways precludes the possibility of bipartisanship and the republicans were prepared to follow a similar route with this particular process, as was followed in previous tax bills and budget bills. So, just so everyone is clear, it was the democrats own preconditions that stpope them froopped them from negotiating n tax reform. There was an open seat at the table. They chose not to sit in it. Another claim i expect to hear is our bill contains a massive tax cut for the socalled rich. This claim, of course, is false. Bill repeats a number of tax credits and deductions, many of which disproportionally benefit meeting the slightly larger rates will apply to a larger base of income. A distribution table has been produced, which clarifies a number of key points, including that all americans will receive a tax break under our bill, with the middle class getting a larger percentage of reductions. It was also found that our bill will not shift the tax burden from the highend to taxpayers in lower brackets. According to jct, those with incomes of 1 million or more a year will see their share of the overall tax burden go up. While the bill lowers rates across the board, it increases the shared taxes, paid by those earning 1 million or more in annual income. Let me just say that again. Our bill increases the overall share of the tax burden paid by millionaires and billionaires. Let me address another jct analysis, which includes more good news. , somef my colleagues percentages of taxpayers will see their taxes go up under the bill. I believe the talking point is that 13 million families from the middle class will see their taxes lower next year if the bill becomes lsaw. Bill becomes law. Lets assume for the sake of argument that my colleagues estimates, which include virtually no context, are co rrect. Even then, the critics for our bill would have the American People believe that the real story is that a relatively small minority of taxpayers could see a slight increase in their taxes. Out to do that, they have t recognize the fact that under that same jct analysis about 90 of those same middleclass taxpayers are gettinga tax cut. At the very least, they are helped under our plan. Colleagues would love to label any republican proposal as a massive tax cut for the rich, but that is not the case here. Our bill is robust on tax relief for middle and lower income taxpayers. There is concern that the legislative we have crafted is dull. Im sure youll also hear more about tax breaks for big corporations under the bill. I would think anyone who has previously gone on record and supported the lowering of the Corporate Tax rate, it will refrain from attacking this bill froor doing just that, but i will hold my breath on that. If the intellectual honesty would have been observed, this markup, most immigrants in this committee would be unable to criticize our efforts to lower corporate rates and endorsed a similar approach in the recent past. Im sure you will also hear about the death tax today, but i hope we get nation from some of our democrat colleagues, including my friend, the Ranking Member, as to why they are so critical of our efforts to sibling mitigate the impact of the death tax they voted in the past to repeal the tax entirely. I also hope they will have a next nation for American Farmers and businesses, for why their de aths should be considered a taxable event when they choose to pass their lifes work, which has already been taxed already, to the next generation. You would likely not hear about this. Number of our democratic colleagues will argue that the deduction is an absolute necessity. I try to ask them why they wanted to forgo the tax break to preserve a Tax Deduction that overwhelmingly benefits the taxpayers at the very highend of the income spectrum, particularly after they have been publicly adding taxes for the socalled rich. I could go on here, but i think my overall point is pretty clear. So far, we have or do number of attacks on our tax reform bill, which cannot withstand much objective scrutiny. Objectivity is not really in order these days. At this point, one thing needs to be clear. To provide tax relief and a bigger tax cut for low and middle income families, to make america a better place to start growing business. There are many in the middle class who have felt left behind under the sluggish economy under the Previous Administration. They are not being heard. We have an opportunity this week to show that we are listening, and we will act to get the economy moving again, to provide better wages, more jobs and new opportunities for individuals and families in america. We can add white reforming our broken tax code in a manner we can add by reforming our broken tax code. I would like to once again thank all of my colleagues for their work to get us this far. I have more to say about their individual efforts in the coming days. I do want to note something. Its namely that the mark is originally introduced. That means we have some work to do, in order to make the reforms permanent, particularly on the business side, where job creators need to be able to plan many years into the future. Thate working to ensure the reduced rates and additional reforms designed to bring investments back to the united creates more working jobs. No real cause for concern at this point, but i do want to make clear that we are looking at a number of alternatives that will fill the necessary gaps. We have every intention of making the business reforms permanent. My good friend, senator wyden and Ranking Member, thank you for your remarks. Mr. Chairman and colleagues, what started out as a promise of a significant, middleclass taxcut has become a multitrillion dollar baut and switch. A massive handout, a Multinational Corporation and a andnza for ataxed sheets powerful political donors. Wherre for millions in the middleclass, this will not be a tax cut at all. It will be a tax increase. So, while corporations are celebrating, being lavish with a holiday gift of police of ts,lars in tax cuyt middleclass families will have to hope they are lucky enough to avoid a tax hike. They certainly cant affordit. Theres a massive gap between the republican rhetoric surrounding this bill and the reality of what is on paper. Billhetoric has made thie to be lost to every true bill to be this yaxing and trul spiritual. In the last few days, the baseless talking points about an acrosstheboard, guaranteed taxcut has been waived down ofh a whole bunchh washington lingo. The is, this bill has always been about cutting taxes on average. On average. Across a variety of income levels. Anybody who has had a bad carrience with a new dealer ought to recognize that that kind of careful hedging is usually covering up one nasty surprise. Now, for the middle class, the bill goes wrong, right out of the gate by illuminating the state and local Tax Deduction. State and local taxes are how communities pay for firefighters, how they apay schools and roads and bridges. Americans dont get to deduct those taxes because of a longstanding principle that says the government should not reach into their pockets twice to double attack the same earnings. The bill republicans have on that principle in the trashcan. Lawmakersr republican of this bill want to say this is a red versus bluyee issue. It is ok to knowingly harm people just because they take a different view on policy. But the red versus blue attempt to the occasion. It simply does not hold up to the facts. It is not just oregon, california and the northeast. They are going to take a hit. D locale state a locanf deductions. Aey are also going to be consistent. C this proposal target communities where the American Dream has sparked Economic Growth and created opportunity and helped more and more people become middleclass. So, eliminating the state and is not abouton smart economic policy. Leave many sure to community is worse off. Now, republicans did not have to go down this road. But because they insisted, since useone, that they ought to most prestigious process in washington, known as reconciliation. They had to squeeze 7 trillion of tax handouts and corporate goodies, giving away 1. 5 trillion in a box. That means telling the middle class in america to pay up. At its core, this plan perpetuates what is most rotten and unfair about the american tax system. The reality is, there are two taxes to him zooamerica. On this one for the cop e beat and the nurse in the emergency room. For them, they are composed and trained. Then, theres another set of rules for when the powerball falls. Can be pay what they want when they want to. The proposal before the committee does nothing to fix that in balance. In fact, it worsens the decision and enshrines the sources of unfairness that lead so many feel theyng americans have been kicked in the gut. Americans are sick im watching american corporations ship overseas, abuse unfair loopholes fakehift their process to headquarters. But this bill essentially tells the corporations, you have been putting in lots of work, chaseing a rockbottom tax rate. Lets go ahead and remove the starting line even closer to zero. Just a massive giveaway is one part of the story. When it comes to the Multinational Corporation of this bill. Under this republican plan, Multinational Corporations will get an even bigger reward for doing business overseas then red,will get for creating white, and blue jobs here at home. Imagine, colleagues, how that is going to sound to the resident the promenade. Too Many Americans have lost jobs. And had great work, wherever they could get it, just to make mincemeat. They are tired of watching the same pattern over and over again and those who have waited decades for a meaningful raise deserve better than to see corporations reward corporations, and is the congress reward corporations t hat hurt tu. S. As a bigt come surprise, but the ideas i described are such a hard sell. Another return to the old playbook, the ministration and republicans cracked out a triple them for dissing map to justify these corporate finance. There making big promises around records wage increases. The tax cuts are paying themselves. But there is no trustworthy independent analysis or historical record to back up those plans. Mnuchinsury secretary even claims the tax handouts would not just pay for themselves, theyd raise additional 1 trillion on that their car. Of i tell you, it sounds like a lot of hopeless arithmetic. Recent analysis said corporate shareholders, not workers, are the overwhelming beneficiaries of tax cuts. F you are tired of the political back and forth on this one, you dont need to listen to lawmakers. Listen to the corporate heads themselves. We are talking about the investor calls they are making. They are already previewing plans to turn their tax cuts into buybacks. Not the new job, not the big wage increases. You dont have to take my word for it. Look at what the corporations are saying when the investor callls. Of americans who cut. D the tax hardworking people who have been sent abroad because of this bill will become victims later on as well. Now i am going to turn to the threat of the floating deficit. Republicant the leader, who seem to want to fly away when the 1. 5 trillion budget bill was proposed, will come flying back, once its safe . And the deficits pile up. Many of the top members in congress have already said, well, entitlement reform is going to be up after taxes. Folks, lets be clear. For is washington speech going after medicare and medicaid. And social security. It is an old game plan, run of a big federal deficit and insist she has the choice. As an american, i have seen this movie before. Legislativebig cut in the Bush White House would have been a cut on security. Both cuts to our safety plan happen, you can add many of americas most vulnerable bill. M of the bn i want to comment on the process, which i consider to be a farce. I was struck by the chairman saying that democrats could have been at the finance tax table. Colleagues, lets be clear. Side even knew where the finance tax table was. We werent invited, we never knew where it was. See. And looking like they wont be able to govern. I want to be clear, i dont think those are the only options on the table. They sure werent the only options when Ronald Reagan and a big group of democrats came together to pass tax reforms. Talk to bill bradley about them, one of our former colleagues. What i will tell you they werent the only option, looking at an unpopular tax bill. Were staying at camp covern. When i got together with two cabinetxecutive members, now a member of the president s cabinet. Theres still the opportunity to work on a by pa e bipartisan effort. Getting a problem with information from both sides you have not heard the middle class. That means republicans and democrats working together, secretly building it before anybody catches on. Nobody has got away. But the partisan process and the bu isan bill, on order to avoid. Twice i have any chance to speak with the ministry of officials. Both times my democratic colleagues and i made clear that we agree with republicans, that frozenx code is a roze entity. We expresse our desire for bipartisand reform. We made it as clear as we are now for months. The message we delivered with that real bipartisan re ganstyle tax reform could pass with 70 or 80 votes, maybe even more. They could make the tax code more fair, putting money back into the pockets of middleclass families and bring on a wave of red, white, and bluejobs. Even before those meetings, democrat shared with republicans the ideas for reform. It was focused on the middle class, focused on fiscal responsibility and a focus on protecting medicaid, medicare and social security. Twice colleagues, in recent weeks, the president has said he is for those principles. But the fact is, and most president s have not been written down by congress on paper. What is offered is a rejection of the bipartisan approach . The bill before the committee has iewn in the public vew. It came out just as this weekend while i was marching in a parade in albany, oregon, i looked for places to make a few quiet calls to washington to get the latest details. And im sure my colleagues were in the same boat. There has not been, nor will there be, based on the process at this point, a single hearing on the details of this proposal. I am sure somebody is going to say the committee can have a full debate this right now, this is not opportunity to hash out our differences and work on tax reform. But lets be clear that is not the way Ronald Reagan did it. That is not what they did when they spent months with top reagan officials going back and forth with democrats like bill bradley to talk about specifics, talk about detailed provisions to make sure particularly the middle class and Small Businesses would not get hurt, and that they would pass a bipartisan bill that would give everybody a chance to get ahead. What is going on now in the Senate Finance committee is an abandonment of the reaganstyle tax reform process. First votes are just around the corner and this bill is going to go through a lot of contortions in the days ahead. I think we ought to be clear that as of now, the contortions are going to be about the same bottom line getting the biggest possible corporate handout on a strictly partisan basis through the senate. The bill has the power to reshape the American Economy in ays that will leave a lot, lot of americans worse off. It is going to raise taxes on millions in the middle class. It will give american Multinational Corporations more relief for doing overseas than they get for doing business in our country. I do not believe it is a radical idea to save the committee ought to take the time to consider these consequences before we start voting. Agreementipartisan that the tax code is a broken mess. So instead of the partisan process that will force middleclass families to pay up to finance a handout for the multinationals, it is not too late to do this right. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you, senator. We will now proceed to member opening statements. Because we are frequently strained for time, i call against making opening statements. But i think we can agree this proceeding is a bit different. I am quite certain most members have thoughts they would like to share before we can start consideration. Under the Committee Rules i want to be flexible but i ask individual members limit their remarks to not more than four minutes. We will begin the remarks of members of the committee. Senator grassley . I want to thank chairman hatch and his staff in their tireless work for putting together such the chairmans mark. I think i speak with some authority on the point that it takes a lot of work to put it together, because i chaired this committee at one time. We operated under the same reconciliation process as being discouraged that is being discouraged at this particular time and we put together a mark to cut taxes in 2001, and did. Through theable to, hard work of my staff and the hard work of senator baucuss staff, put something together that got 25 of the Democratic Caucus to vote for. Bipartisanship is very much in opportunity under an opportunity under reconciliation. So we now have a once in a Generation Opportunity to modernize our tax code in a way that will provide significant middle income tax cuts, while mac making the tax code simpler and fairer. At the heart of this legislation is making good on a commitment to enact significant tax cuts for middle income taxpayers. On average, middleclass families will see their tax bill shrink by nearly 5,000. Nearly 1500. It will help ease the financial strain for working families. By nearly doubling the standard deduction, many lower income taxpayers will be removed from the tax rolls entirely. Moreover, the tax Filing Season will become much more simplified for millions of americans. Small businesses will also see significant tax cuts from the rate reductions on the individual side, but also from an innovative pass through business income deduction. This tax relief will incentivize investments back into the business, creating jobs and spurring Economic Growth. With Small Businesses responsible for a majority of new jobs, this is a crucial component of the projob, progrowth tax framework. It will also bring our Corporate Tax structure into the 21st century. Outdated worldwide tax system has put American Companies at a real competitive disadvantage globally, costing american jobs. Our Corporate Tax system has been strained to its breaking point, as we had battled corporate inversions and corporate takeovers without actually expecting this trend not only to persist, but to grow. Democratic colleagues have expressed concerns that we are moving too fast. But we have been discussing tax reform for years, and the time for action is right now. The good work on the part of both republican and democratic chairman of this committees pas t has helped lay the groundwork to help get us where we are today. Io stunned her stand also understand our democratic colleagues object to the use of reconciliation. But reconciliation does not have to be synonymous with partisanship. I know this from experience, and i have already referred to my work with jeremy baucas and Ranking Member baucas. The result of that, we passed reconciliation legislation out of this committee with strong bipartisan support by a vote of 135. So there is no reason for this to have to be a partisan process today. I yield. Senator atwell. I will try ton, do my best but this is pretty important legislation. First, i want to say i do not agree with many of the president s economic strategies. I do not believe in his notion of fear and isolationism. I do not believe in his notion of discussing things that are going to start trade wars. I do not believe in his lack of support for a functioning export and hank Export Import Bank which will help manufacturers build projects and seek homes and find acceptance in international markets. Thatnot support his notion they ought to mandate that consumers in ohio or kentucky pay higher electricity rates by forcing them to adhere to purchasing coal, because he wants to bring coal back. And i dont support his notions r d. Tting innovation and i dont think you have to have oil,ame logic for coal to and say the only way that amazon or microsoft can get a tax break is if we destroy the great wilderness of the arctic wildlife reference refuge. I had high hopes for what would be a discussion about our Corporate Tax rate, having Many Companies in my state that have to compete on an international basis. I was hoping to have that discussion. When my colleagues on the other side of the aisle said it needed to be deficit neutral, i listened. I said this is interesting. When they said we are going to for loopholes going to close corporate loopholes, i listened. I thought, maybe this is where we are going to go. Were going to sit down in a collaborative fashion and Work Together. Mr. Chairman, you and i do have a good working relationship. But the notion that the president had a meeting of the finance members at the white house and i was not represented because i do not represent a state he did not win, is a ridiculous idea. So the notion of where we are isay, and my main objection, that instead of doing those things we talked about on the Corporate Tax rate, looking at some of these things like exchanges orest or the fact that golf courses get tax breaks instead, a big chunk of this bill is being paid for on the backs of middleclass families by taking away their deductions. Their local sales tax to duction from a state like mine that does not have an income tax. From their property taxes not being able to be deducted, or the mortgage deduction. I know there are differences between the house and the senate bill, but this is not simple vacation of our tax code it is simply raising taxes on middleclass families in my state, and it is raising taxes on millions of americans across the United States to give a break to the corporations. So it is a very different structure than we talked about. Now, most subjecting mr. Workedn, you and i have very hard on trying to make more affordable housing, but by getting rid of these deductions on property taxes, on home mortgage, the notion that youre getting rid of private activity bonds in the house legislation, and that you are making changes to the low income tax credit in the senate bill, is just making housing more expensive. We had a Record Number of americans who are in unaffordable housing situation. O, i look at our challenges and i know that some of our colleagues talked about the Small Business it is so complex. It is so challenging. I dont know what Small Businesses are going to benefit from this. Mr. Chairman, i hope that we can slow down. The reason i mention the housing and i will wrap up, is that housing used to be 50 of gdp. 15 of gdp. Now it is only 12 of gdp. You think thisow notion of returning investment from overseas not a bad idea, something we can talk about. But we are just returning it and it is going to go into the dividend pool. There is in there that says it to go to infrastructure investment, road, housing, or even job training. I can guarantee you it is not worth giving a tax break to corporations if you cannot find a qualified workforce where they have to live 1. 5 hours away because housing is so expensive. Mr. Chairman, thank you for the additional minute. I hope we will slow down. I hope we have the courage to Work Together in a regular order process. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Everyone here has heard me say many times that if we had tried to, we probably could not have created a tax code that is more unfair, more complex, more expensive to comply with, or more anticompetitive to our own American Business interests than the code we are working on. Finally we have an opportunity to move forward with meaningful reform. Once again, the attack is made ant is just its just effort to raise taxes on the poor and middle class and cut taxes for the wealthy. Rhetoric is flying all over the place. Lets just look at some of the facts. We all have in front of us or should the distributional charts that have been put out by our own fatcts writers and assistance facts writers and assistance. It shows the amount of taxes in dollars will go down for every single income category in america. And if you look at these distributional charts, you will see that the largest percentages of reduction are in the lower and middle class income categories. Show thatharts also the average tax rate will go down for every single income category in america. And once again, a greater percentage of reduction for those in the lower to middle income categories. Yet, we will continue to face the attacks of that what we are doing is trying to raise taxes for those in the middle and lower income categories so that we can further the nest of the wealthy. The opposite is the case. Tax reform can save millions of additional lower and middle income families from having to save their receipts and dig them up each year at tax time, do not tell them that is not a meaningful benefit. If the simplification of our tax code can further save those families from the need to pay potentially hundreds of dollars a year for someone else to prepare their tax returns because the code is so complex, dont tell them that is not a benefit. If every Single Member of every single bracket of income earners in america gets a tax reduction, and the biggest percentage of tax reduction goes to those in the middle and lower income categories, do not tell them we are raising the taxes. If progrowth effects of making American Business more effective around the world can result in more job opportunities, dont tell them we are feathering the nest of the wealthy. The reality is we are going to address the true problems with our tax code and it is going to help all americans have a stronger, healthy america, a stronger family, stronger wages, better growth, and inability to grow out of our fiscal crisis. Very importantr effective conference of reform we have to fully explore. Some have suggested our current fiscal situation suggest it is irresponsible to do any cash reform that increases the debt. Actually, the opposite is the case. This is precisely the time we need to focus on the dynamic opportunities for growth in our economy. On our current path, and our own analysts have told us, if we do not change our course, we will see our rate of growth in this economy stay at its stagnant level of below 2 . Other analysts have said if we will take a dynamic approach to taking fixing this broken tax code in making ourselves more competitive, we will see growth significantly increase, helping not just individuals and families, but helping this nation become much more competitive economically. I see that my time is running out. I have some charts and analysis to go through. I guess we will do it at another time. Mr. President , it is time to fix our code. We no longer need america to have the most complex, the most expensive, and the most anticompetitive code in the world, and one that pushes down our own citizens ability to achieve the American Dream. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you for the opportunity to make an opening statement. When i left washington last thursday, hardly anyone had seen the republican tax plan. We areholiday weekend, now here marking up the most consequential tax policy in 31 years. With no hearings. Not a single hearing. Mr. Chairman, America Needs tax reform. I joined the finance committee because i believed we have not reformed our tax code since i was in college with a smith corona typewriter. Economy has transformed since then but our tax code remains frozen in the past. We should clean up special interest loopholes. We should help our businesses compete in a global economy. We need comprehensive and bipartisan reform. Tradition,eak with the committee has made no serious attempt to bring both sides together. Instead the majority wrote a deeply flawed proposal that adds 1. 5 trillion to our debt. In 2014 republican member of the committee wrote it does not take a genius to see we are sitting on a growing timebomb of debt. It isnt unfair burden to pass on to our children and grandchildren. I agree. Thisnk its important in context to review how we arrived at this point. In 2000, president clinton left a 5. 6 trillion surplus to the successor. At that Time Congress held hearings about how to invest in our future and pay down our debt. Some members of the senate were here for that. The sameident bush, arguments were hearing today, signed two major tax cuts, one of which was after we invaded iraq, and prosecuted two wars without paying for them. Then he signed Medicare Part d without paying for that. A number of people voted with president bush on all those steps and are still here today. When president obama came to office in 2009, he inherited a collapsing economy and a 1. 2 t rillion annual deficit. Then amidst the greatest economic crisis since the great depression, a lot of Republican Leaders all of a sudden remembered fiscal conservatives. Nearly all of them opposed city millions from unemployment. Over the next eight years despite bipartisan efforts to debt, leadership consistently rejected a balanced result. As a result, washington is taking the easy path by cutting investments in our future. Infrastructure at the same time burdening our future with trillions more in depth. Should seem deeply unfair to americans in their 20s and younger to know that we are investing less in them than our parents and grandparents invested enough. And in us. Then we have the nerve to say you need to pay back the debt that we incurred investing in ourselves. Four years republican members of this committee has raved have raise alarms about our debt. I believe they are sincere. But i struggle to comprehend how they can square that view and support this plan. As our debt grows we will spend billions more not on schools, roads organization, but on interest costs. And we are about to blow another hole in the debt without helping the middle class, which is what makes it even worse. By20 the senate plan19 2019, the senate plan would nose while providing benefits to nearly 54 million households. We know that when deficit swells, as they surely will, cuts to medicaid and medicare are sure to follow, further burdening working families struggling to make ends meet. That is not what the American People want. We need to stop this and write a bill worthy of this committee. Thank you for allowing me to take a few additional senates seconds. I want to thank you for your leadership, your perseverance and your patience. Thes abundantly clear, complexity and antiquated system directly affects the jobs and wellbeing of all americans. We now have before us a comprehensive plan to address these issues, cleaning up and modernizing the tax code to help generate more growth. The bill before us does exactly that. Providing meaningful tax relief for families and Small Businesses. I am especially pleased with the rates be legislation would put into place on the individual side. We have done a good job pushing these great rate reductions down to lower and middle income families. This would provide a tax cut to families in kansas of about 2500. We accomplish this by reducing individual tax rates, raising the standard deduction and increasing the child credits in the tax code. I want to turn to agriculture. I am pleased that the chairmans mark returns agriculture to our economy. As agriculture economy number of provisions in the tax code that recognize the uncertain and volatile nature that income and expense associated with forming operations. Farmers and ranchers have no control over the weather and face highly unpredictable markets. That is certainly true today. This is the third year of depressed prices and tighter credit. They also fate under the critical and linked issue uncertainty in trade policy, a policy that is still very much a work in progress within the administration. I am happy to say that this taxrmans mark keeps the ag provisions that will also help farmers by creating a much more progrowth tax system, lowering the tax burden and simplifying taxes relating to the ag sector. This will enable a farmer to put significantly more dollars in his or her bank account, money which will be used to enable them to be the challenges of not america, but a troubled and humbly world. This legislation also transitions our current International Tax system to a territorial system. This is particularly important because it will adjust concerns i have long had with the International Competitiveness of our Corporate Tax reform. I have a concerns that the current arcane International System has made our Homegrown Companies targets for takeovers by foreign competitors, leading to job loss, not to mention a drain on our federal trade. Now, is this a perfect bill . By no means. But it is a very good bill that i firmly believe will lead to more Economic Growth. Mr. Chairman, through the process you have laid out, we can improve this good bill to make it the very best built under very difficult and partisan circumstances. Thank you. Hat thank you forn, the excellent job you have done spearheading this effort. It is a culmination of years of work by the committee, including 70 hearings on how the tax code can be improved and streamlined to work better for taxpayers. We can also recall the 10 option papers issued as part of the blank slate approach launched in 2013 to scrub the tax code and produce solutions to modernizing. Many have expressed outrage at the use of reconciliation to provide tax relief to millions of americans. But this process argument should not be a reason why partisan support should not be reached or cannot. Notipartisan support should or cannot be reached. When i hear are democratic colleagues say they were not included in the process, that was their choice. This simply walked off the field. Theyre really just complaining about the fact they cannot take their ball with them. The tax cuts and jobs act is already a bipartisan bill in its most significant aspects. Democrats say they want tax relief, too. Former president barack obama and a number member of this committee has repeatedly called for lowering the Corporate Tax rate in order to make our goods more and businesses more competitive in a global economy. Now the Ranking Member in effect called it a handout. This bill does lower the corporate rate, as barack obama and Chuck Schumer and others have called for in the past. The Ranking Member on a number has opposed a standard deduction for millions of taxpayers. This bill does that. There is also room for further agreement. If our friends across the aisle want to quit complaining and would like to join us in helping middleclass americans, middle income americans pay their bills and save for retirement, we would invite them to do so. This is that opportunity. They should join our efforts and help keep americans help americans keep more of the money they earn in their pockets so they can spend it the way they see fit. Finally, this legislation includes a number of common sense proposals which will signify the tax code, reduce complexity and make the system fair. We like this idea because as our colleague suggested, these provisions will enable us to lower tax burdens on Small Businesses and working families which deserve a fair shake in the tax system. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Look, this is an exciting opportunity because our tax code is so broken. Everyone seems to say the same thing which is that this is a mess. This tax code, which is not been reformed in a substantial way in 31 years, is desperately in need of an overhaul. And they also support middleclass tax cuts which is exactly what is going on here. So we should try to Work Together. I remember the working group that i cochaired. I remember sitting in on a lot of those hearings we talked about. We had five Bipartisan Groups. The one i cochaired was on international. Said we have to lower the business rate so it is not the highest rate in the world, because until we do that youre going to see jobs and investment overseas. So we have to switch to an International System that keeps us up with the rest of the worlds we can be competitive and our workers are not competing with one hand tied behind her back. That is what this does. We might have specifics where we disagree but this has never been partisan before. My hope is that on these proposals, we can achieve a level of bipartisanship and we can actually get this done, because it is so needed, so critical. By the way, back in 1986 the last time we reformed the tax code, pete rose was still playing for the cincinnati reds. That is how long ago it was. In ohio we will see a cut for middleclass families. Median familyt a income will see a tax cut of a year. 400 i was asked why that was meaningful. Because a lot of people are living paychecktopaycheck. This will help save for a vacation, maybe retirement. To say somehow thats not tax relief, but restate nationally the number is about 1500. That is a 40 cut. In federal reduction income tax. That is significant. So, it is in here. Dont believe me. I know everybody but he leaves politico so lets see what they the know everybody believes media so lets see what politico has to say. We dont always agree with them but they are not partisan, i can try to that. Here are their distribution tables. Their public now. Jct. Gov. O on this tells us the tax cuts are rope. 18,000 tax cut in this for. Le making it goes from about 14. 8 in tax to an average of about 13. 7 in tax. These are the real numbers, take a look at them. Go online yourselves and take a look. You will see every single income tax packet gets a tax cut and it is meaningful. What will be more meaningful is the fact that we will be able to have a better job. That is why we need to reform. Our app rages that week currently of jobs going overseas because of our tax code. 1400 companies according to a recent study by ernst young that said would of stayed if we had this kind of tax code in place. Outraged. Be it is our responsibility to fix it, no one else can. By the way, who gets her . American workers. The Congressional Budget Office america haveers in lower wages and lower benefits because of the broken tax code we have to fix. That is what this proposal does a hand it is consistent with others. By we can do it in a bipartisan way. We can have a spirited debate, that is fine, but lets come together at the end of the day and do something good that helps to fix it tax code that everyone acknowledges is broken. Tracks thank you mr. Chairman. Let me echoes senator portmans point thank you mr. Chairman. Let me echo one of senator portmans points. This will result in substantial middleclass tax relief. It is been documented. What we solved for. That is in fact. We are going to lower the burden of taxes on the vast majority of americans and the overwhelming majority of middleclass and income folks that we are also going to make our business tax code finally competitive. We are fixing exactly what needs to be fixed. Eightyearber, the Obama Administration coincided with the worst economic recovery in american history. President obama got the policies he wanted. Past these stimulus, repeated tax hikes, government virtual takeover of health care, huge unprecedented wave of new regulations. They go it they wanted and it resulted in extremely feeble growth. Something on the order of 2 . We were told, get used to it. This is the new normal. This is what the American Economy does these days. That cannot be more untrue. There is nothing inevitable about a lack of long straw growth. We can restore the growth of prosperity we have been waiting for. , one of theken things it was broken, and this was well documented. The growth lack in of productivity. That was almost certainly cause lack of capital stock. That caused a lack of wage gain. Problems. Ing these we are fixing these problems to a very large degree. On the business side, were going to lower tax rates. We are going to allow immediate, full deduction of new capital. People can expense that immediately. What will that do . It will allow American Workers and businesses to be competitive and to win in a competitive global economy. What we encourage and incentivize business to purchase more of the plants and equipments that allowed them to grow, were going to encourage enhancement of connectivity. That is a productivity grows. Tois out capital gets put work. When productivity gains are restored, that is where wage growth comes from. That is what this bill is going to do. Let me say word about the deficit. Some of my colleague suggested a great concern about a deficit, which i do not recall at the time when they were passing the big stimulus spending bill but heres a fact. This is an accident of law, we will have a smaller deficit and heres why. The tax reform bill contemplates a trillion dollars of foregone revenue relative to the current policy the federal government is pursuing. So, how much extra growth will it take to generate the text revenue to fill it not whole stacks the tax revenue to fill in that hole, keeping in mind how profound that is. The answer is less than 4 10 of 1 of Economic Growth. If you are the camp the believes it is not possible for america to have strong growth, then you skeptical. Im not at the camp the leaves american Economic Growth is a thing of the past i am not of the camp that believes american Economic Growth is a thing of the past. Commendrman, i want to you on your work. Im looking forward to getting this product that is. Taxes forng to lower middleincome taxpayers, were going to enact the most progrowth business reforms and over 40 years. The process, we will have smaller deficits and that will result in a higher standard of living for the people we represent. So thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you. Brown. Senator brown thank you, chairman. Tax reform should be about pockets ofey in the working people in ohio and across the country. That is what the president said he wants, that is what i want, that is what most of us in this room once. But that is not what this bill does. Giving you a trillion dollars to wealthy Multinational Corporations, some of the same corporations that sent american jobs overseas. Trusts working people to somehow that money will increase their wages. The only problem is the will not work and never has. Or the last four years, corporate profits of got up, executive salaries of gone up, worker productivity is gone up, corporations today have record amounts of cash in the stock market continues to hit recordbreaking eyes. But what about the wages or benefits of American Workers are graded that wealth . They have been flat and into many cases they have a client. Profits haveate resulted in pay raises, if they have, why would it be any different . History shows they will not. The New York Times recently in 2004, Multinational Companies pedaled a similar bill on capitol hill. You the tax holiday comedy give us a tax holiday, we will create 500,000 jobs, give workers significant pay increases. Congress, a decade plus a go, but what they were selling and 299005 the times reports billion dollars did in fact come back from overseas to the United States but the jobs never came. Never came. Eases that money went straight into the pockets of Corporate Executives and corporate members and shareholders. According to the senates own report, the same corporations that took advantage of the tax holiday actually laid off American Workers. Exactly the opposite of what they promised. The top 15 corporations alone 930 onehousand, american jobs, many of them in my state. The same time those companies promised to bring those money back to increase jobs, pay higher wages, at the same time they increased annual compensation for their top five executives by 27 . Wall street got paid. American workers got cheated. Lets not do that again. Outsolution is simple, cut the middleman. Instead of giving money to the corporations and hoping some of it trickles down into the pockets of working people, lets just give the money, lets just focus the tax cut, on working people. If we want to cut taxes to the middle class, maybe well we ought to cut taxes to the middle class. That is how we do it. Giving money directly to consumers who will spend it at the gas pump, grocery store, mall, dealerships. Restaurants, sporting events. That is how you build the economy from the middle out. That is the fundamental difference on this committee. You give tax cuts to the rich, trickles down and nothing really middle class to stimulate the economy. You focus on the middle class, in the tax cuts at the middle class, that is a you grant the economy. People like to talk is to have this committee. Look at the 1990s. 42 million private sector jobs created during the clinton years when we focused on the middle class. Net jobe years, 0 increase. This committee did too big tax cuts for the rich during the bush years. Women chance to Work Together in a bipartisan way to actually do real good for American Workers. Of blindly doling out a trillion dollars for Multinational Corporations, to send jobs overseas, count on that with this kind of a tax code and these kind of tax for puzzles. Lets target the companies that create good paying jobs in the United States. That is the Patriot Corporation act. If you keep jobs in the United States government vested American Workers, pay decent wages and benefits, you get a decent tax rate. Overseas, takes advantage of American Workers, you do not get a lower tax rate. By targeting those tax cuts towards those who helped build our economy, we saved billions of dollars and put money into the pockets of American Workers. But families dont think in terms of threemonth earning quarters. They think in terms of school years, 30year mortgages, how many years until retirement. We did a tax code that does the same, response to the needs of working families not wall street. It is workers who drive the economy. Consumers. The middle last. Directly to cuts workers, consumers, the middle class. We have offered numerous times to work with our republican colleagues on this committee. They put up a sign saying pretty much, no thanks. We have offered to work directly with the president. Not long ago the president invited all the republican members of his committee to sit with him in the cabinet room. He invited Ranking Member you thought it would be appropriate. Then he invited five other senators. No ey, nelson, stub and senator stabenow. The five of us. We were not sure why those five right during that meeting i brought up the Patriot Corporation act, those companies that do the right thing, the dude what the president with wages, key pay good production of the United States, they get a lower tax rate. I handed the builtin, he said he liked the idea. I also handed him my working families tax relief act. He liked that idea, too. Our door has been opened. Our door will continue to be up and went to Work Together to pass tax cuts for working families, middleclass americans. We want to pass a bill the rewards corporations who keep american jobs. Mr. President , lets put money directly into the pockets of the American People. I believe in reforming our tax code. I believe in cutting out the 70,000 pages in the code and making our system warfare on temple. I believe in bipartisanship. Finally excited when i got an opportunity to serve on this committee. The finance committee. The home of bipartisanship. The home of a delivered to process. I actually believe this would be a year i got to participate in the famous bipartisan work of the Senate Finance committee. So far, i have been very disappointed. There were no hearings on the Health Care Bill and now we are about to undertake a process that is so important and we did not even get a sectionbysection analysis of this bill until 20 four hours ago. Three hours before we were supposed to have amendments filed. It is being done in reconciliation. Mr. Chairman, i join. I think you are a good man. I adore you, we are good friends. I love you, too. [laughter] im going to quote you on the senate floor. Reconciliation has become a partisan process and using the reconciliation process would poison the well for tax reform, making it all but impossible. Words a fewour years ago, mr. Chairman. Weve not been invited to the room for this bill. Ive been told by some of my republican colleagues who actually wrote the bill they said, what may be a few wet and talk to the senator, think they are the ones writing it. Maybe this senator, maybe they are the ones writing a. Going to begin of our Company Finance committee would we did not even get a full 24 hours to look at the section by section analysis before amendments were due . Are we really going to do that . Cover by the way, the section by section analysis we got yesterday afternoon was different than the description we got on thursday. They were not even the same. Need to know how missouri citizens will be impacted. I am disappointed in the lack of simplification in this reform bill. Roll reform means making the tax code more simple and fair. I am worried by the time the process is done we are going to make it that much more complex. I am concerned about the parity between corporations and regular folks. It appears we have not done away with very many loopholes to pay for the Corporate Tax reduction or business reduction. A boy, we got rid of individuals. Think about this, family afford missouri begets a job outside of the city of chicago, they have to no longer deduct their moving expenses but this is in st. Louis he decides to move their company to india can deduct their expenses. How fair is that . I am specifically most concerned about the changes to the complexity of the new roles. Rough 95 of the businesses in america are passthrough industries. We are making major changes with a lot of complexity about how they are going to be treated. You may have had hearings on big subject or working groups on big subjects. Weve had no hearings on the specifics of this proposal and how it is going to impact missouri businesses. Aboutis nothing in here the carried interest loophole, which weve been talking about for years. It is not even mentioned. Why not . To passn such a rush this bill was just republican votes that we overlooked some serious consequences. Clear in my state this is going to blow a 1 billion hole in missouris legislature because when the standard deduction is doubled, it is at a state level. We have a balanced Budget Amendment in missouri. They are already cutting the disabled and the elderly and terms of money received. Need money,eally because of the budget problems and missouri. I need the legislative leaders and governors in missouri to tell me where the money is coming from. And they going to raise taxes, wiping up the benefits of middleclass . Or are they going to take even more money out of Higher Education, transportation, and payments to the elderly and disabled. We have no idea. This is not well thought out. We can do this better. I want to work with you. I want to work with republicans. Give us a chance. Dui. Asked thank you. I received a letter from a constituent of mine a couple weeks ago thank you. I received a letter from a constituent of mine a couple weeks ago. Here is in part with the letter said. Why should high income families get a tax break when we will hike, in thetax case of his own family. He goes on to say his tax relief for families will never feel a pinch necessary at the expense of those who budget and live responsibly. Mr. Chairman, i have to echoed those words. There is bipartisan agreement that we need tax reform. We need to reform the code. We need to make it simpler and more fair. What is before us today is not tax reform that prioritizes the middle class but a tax scheme. It is a giveaway to the superrich and big corporations at the expense of some, even many, middleclass families. We should be working together in a bipartisan way to raise wages by way of this process. To create jobs. Republican tax a plan that was negotiated and written in secret by special interest in washington and for special interests in washington. That is likely the reason the planrush through with little oversight. This partisan bill moves round something on the order of nine trade dollars in our economy. It was released on thursday night and we have been given four days to review over 247 pages of proposed changes to the entire tax code and to understand the potential impact on businesses and residences in our state. Compare that process with what happened in the reagan years. The number 33 is probably the most relevant. On thels the number reagan proposal, so detailed it was 489 pages long. 27 hearings on that and then six hearings on a house bill that went through long days of markup. A total of 33 hearings either on president reagans proposal or the house bill. What about this bill . According to an assessment we received from the joint committee on tax, about 40 of americans paying between 30,000 40,000 in year will see a tax increase or a tax cut of less than nine dollars a month in year 2019. This is on the individual income tax id. The bill also make significant changes to how and where corporations tax. This could encourage outsourcing which would be devastating to families across the board. The senate bill includes a complicated calculation which may actually allow companies to outsource manufacturing to avoid paying any taxes on those foreign profits. At best the senate plan would cutdax would [indiscernible] let me make three final points. According to estimates from the joint committee on taxation, congress is official scorekeeper. Million 13. 8 middleclass households making under 200,000 will see a tax increase in 2019. The joint Committee Also found under the house plan, 25 of taxpayers pay more under that scheme and finally, the budget resolution which kick started cutrepublican tax plan and medicare and medicaid by a trillion and half dollars. The republicans propose cutting nursing home care for seniors, Cutting Services for individuals the disabilities, while at same time giving tax giveaways to the superrich. One final question mr. President and mr. Chairman, i wonder if ofone in the development this bill asked the simple question what will the impact on children be as a result of this bill . Well this bill make it more or less likely that children will be helped . Im afraid that question was never asked. A longer statement for the record. Thank you. Christ mr. Chairman, thank you. Thanks for your leadership. As you know, my brother was a my father was an auto mechanic. Probably the bluest of blue colors. If yould your children, work hard and play by the rules you will succeed. You work hard you you play by the rules, you will live the American Dream. I have heard from americans who have told me the American Dream is no longer the case. That is a reason we are here today. Thetoo many people, American Dream is slipping away. Mother it is a single heard from in las vegas who does not receive child support, works fulltime simply trying to make ends meet. I for from an engineer who is fighting hard to get his Small Business off the ground, wondering if he will catch a break and be able to hire his first employee. I continue to hear from decent, hardworking nevada families and Small Business owner struggling to cut their expenses and get ahead in life. That is because for too long nevadans and americans across stagnantry have faced wages, field Economic Growth under the policies of the Previous Administration. As a result of economic policies of the Previous Administrations, workers have suffered. Job creation has suffered. Middleclass americans have suffered. In nevada, we still bear the scars of the field of obama economic era policies. Household income is 7,000 lower today than it was 10 years ago. Nevada families are more likely to be living paycheck to every othernearly state. The sad reality is that for most nevadans, the recession has never really ended. That is why i have been working each and every day with the chairman and for months with my colleagues on this committee to craft the tax relief package that we have in front of us today. The tax relief bill that accomplishes three major goals. Creates more jobs, increases wages, and boosts american competitiveness. This provides real meaningful tax relief to nevadans middleclass and job creators. Keep more ofyers their hardearned money, makes our tax code the easier to understand. The tax bill requires less paperwork, puts more money in peoples back pockets. The tax bill results in more jobs, higher wages and growth in communities. A tax bill that significantly increases take home pay and Economic Opportunity. Recent studies by the White House Council of economic advisers and Boston University economist suggest as result of this bill though we are talking about today, Household Incomes could rise by an average of 3500 4000. Anothert what 3000 4000 in income would be to a nevada family that has not seen a pay raise in 10 years. Middleclass nevadans and americans across his great nation deserve a shot at a better life. We now have a president who is willing to work with us and sign meaningful tax reform into law. It assigned for this committee deliver on providing true leaf to middleclass taxpayers to reinstate the refitted by my parents that the American Dream is not only possible but will be a reality for those who work hard and play by the rules. Mr. Chairman, thank you. Thank you, senator. You mr. Chairman. I do want to congratulate you and your staff for the hard work they put into getting is where we are today and to say that it , theis not accurate arguments made by some of our colleagues that somehow this was rushed upon us. I came of the Senate Committee in 2011. Since 2011, we have had north of 70 hearings, Senate Finance committee hearings, and senate tax reform. I have sat through a good number of those. I do not think there is a single theme explored in this tax reform bill that was not covered in those hearings. In 2015, under the chairmans leadership, we created five working groups which examined in great detail every aspect of the tax code. I had the privilege of leading, along with senator cardinal working group that looked at business taxation. Staff and members that literally hundreds of hours diving into the details of the finer points of a lot of these issues and makingling a report and recommendations. There been a 10 of four put into getting to where we are today and i thank you for that, mr. Chairman. Let me just say that one of the things that has been said here cover the point that is made, the typical throwaway line for democrats is that this is for the rich. As has been pointed out by some of my colleagues here, this will tax relief to middle income families. That is an objective and indisputable fact. Your nearly doubling the standard deduction. Middleincome families are going to get tax relief from this effort. And boy did they needed, because a lot of American Families are living paycheck to paycheck. In fact, 50 of American Families are saying they are living paycheck to paycheck and they are only one incident away from financial crisis. This is about putting more money into their pockets and they can deal with daytoday issues and allow them to have their paychecks and take home pay. Secondly, it is about growth. This fundamentally is about Economic Growth. Why . Because we have had abysmal growth rates for the last 28 years. 1. 5 2 . The congressional often says we are going to grow less than 2 for the next decade. I do not think 1. 8 or 1. 9 growth is enough. That should not be the new normal. We have to grow at a faster rate. What happens when the economy is growing at a faster rate . At least businesses are expanding and growing their operations, and meets the demands of labor goes up. What is the result of that . Higher wages, that is what this is about, higher wages for American Families have literally in a decade. Raise that is what Economic Growth does for an economy. We know the reform will lead to greater Economic Growth because we know right now our textile is completely noncompetitive. If we dont get competitive were going to continue to hemorrhage jobs, companies, profits, and investments to other parts of the world. We have to make in america attractive if we are going to into ourl growth back economy. The issue has been raised. Toave been here long enough know we dont have 60 cuts votes to cut voting. We probably dont have 51 votes to do anything about reforming entitlement programs because we just dont. Nobody wants to take this issue seriously which we have to do we are going to get our arms around making our spending Government Program sustainable in the long term. Is starthing we can do to generate more revenue for the government. One percentage point Income Growth will generate an one point 3 trillion in terms of revenue coming in to the government. With debt,to do away we need to get growth back at the all the way to get growth back is to start doing the kind of things to make america and attractive place to invest. I want to thank you for your leadership on this. You haveact incorporated into this act would simplify accounting rules for businesses, it will be a bill we introduced. Gig act. Included the addressesn that worker classification by creating safe harbor for those who want to work as an independent contractor. Those are important for small and mediumsized businesses. I want to say again, if you look at what were trying to accomplish your it is higher wages, better paying jobs, more growth in the economy, tax relief for middleincome families and keeping jobs in this country. That is what middleincome jobs are bad and that is why we have to reform tax code and simplify. With that i will yield back the balance of my time. Thank you. Senator enzi. I want to thank you for holding this important historic beginning of a markup today to consider tax reform that will boost americas economy, create more jobs, leave more money in peoples pockets from their paycheck. It is just the beginning of the process. Once we finish some specific questions tomorrow, we will begin the amendment and it is my understanding there are over 300 amendments in a been submitted that could be debated. That is an opportunity for everybody to the say in the spell and that is not the end of it, would it makes it out of the committee of old onto the floor there is also the opportunity there are amendment. It is for process, virtually unlimited amendments. After the last amendment is voted on, and indoor and can be put it in. So there is a lot of opportunity for everybody to have input into the process. There has to be a structured to start with and there is a structure here to start with. A lot of things have changed since 1986 but unfortunately our tax code is not one of them. It is an outdated mess hurting Americans Workers and holding our economy back and that is why we need tax reform that will donnelly make the system more simple and fair but put more money in peoples pockets. We are talking about, simply said we should be able to file on a postcard. One of the other staffers said, what is a postcard . So i think we will have to have one screen on a nap to take care cap on an app for most people. Tax relief for every american is how we can help jumpstart our economy. Under the Previous Administration they had an idea that we just did some projects we could stimulate the economy. It talks about a trillion dollars. That was a dream. Some is not even been spent yet. But it does not work. The economy went to 1. 9 tenths percent gdp. That is productivity growth in the private sector and that is where most of the money comes from. That is where most of the people work. 2 10orm is three and percent. A littlerking with different approach. This is the approach the president has asked for to increase the productivity about 4 10 of 1 and pay for it that way. Along with tax cuts and fairness we have to make it simpler. By simplifying we will ensure hardworking americans are not missing out on available tax relief. It provides relief for small, familyowned businesses. That is a major part. The passthrough businesses. The majority of is private sector of wyoming employed. That is the backbone. They will have the opportunity to grow and provide more jobs. I talked to some of the weekend and i think they are excited. Careu care about jobs, about American Companies are moving overseas and being able to can beat globally, then you also care about the business tax. America has the fourth highest Corporate Tax rate. We need to encourage bringing back tax revenues come increasing jobs, lowering our uncommonly high and uncompetitive tax rate would be one of the quickest ways to solve the problem. It is time we make america more exciting inviting place to create jobs, especially in this Small Businesses. One of my longterm legislative priorities has been International Tax reform which encouragefforts to bringing money back to the u. S. And creating a level playing field. Forced our Multinational Companies to operate on senate tax rolls more than 50 years old. I hope we can change that. I look forward to working with. Y colleagues and firstssidy cook point to make about first point, it will be a tax cut for working families and louisiana. We have had the slowest economic recovery in u. S. History. Folks i jobs leave. Tax reform will put the american again by allowing people to make and keep money. Allowing standard deductions of Families First 24,000 in income is taxedfree. It expands the Child Tax Credit. According to the tax foundations analysis, the bill will boost take him pay for louisiana families by moreximately 1900 a year, money for groceries, education, retirement, and raising kids. Imagine what that would mean to families. A big difference in their life. Another problem, tax reform helps create better paying jobs and increase opportunities for everyone. The current tax code encourages American Companies to move overseas in order for faraj alshiblis the American Companies. This bill encourages American Companies to invest in the United States. Investment creates jobs. This bill would create more than 12,600 new jobs in louisiana alone, nationwide creating nearly one million new jobs. When there is competition for workers, companies that a worker wages and give Better Benefits in an attempt to recruit those workers. For louisiana particularly common this gerbil encourage Energy Producers to make investments in the gulf coast and provide good day jobs for those workers. It will reinforce americas status with all of the geopolitical benefits the come along. Inclusion thergy, single provision has supported more than 38,000 jobs in 2 billion in development for 2002. Key priority for President Trump, for republicans in the house, in for those of us in the senate who are united in our goal to cut taxes for working families. Mr. Chairman, congratulations. Id look forward to working with everyone to make it better and we will keep working until we get it done to provide louisiana families and workers with the support they need and deserve. I yield back. I was reallyr anxious to get on this committee. Spent a lot of time on whether i i have to on or not tell you, i am so disappointed by the process. Us back ine to get the corner together, mr. Chairman. Process i think has been itque, i do not think upholds strong credentials you in the members have brought to so many issues. I just wonder why the majority has kept so much of this secret. With no time. Ough rushingit through it through with no time, without the proper review and appropriate examination. You mentioned the fact i know a few individuals in this arena. One that i was proud to be involved with. Simpson bowles many of us try to blame not plan. Let me recall simpson bowles. It lowered corporate rates but it was actually fully paid for. It actually increased our revenue flow because we do have one of the highest Corporate Tax rates in the world and we do need to lower it to make it more competitive. You have to knowledge the fact that few look at americas total tax burden compared to all of the competitive countries around the world, america ranks 31 out of 34. That is an unfortunate fact people dont like to knowledge but if we look at how to stay competitive with countries that have much lower corporate rates, we have to look at how they are generating revenue and frankly, we have not looked at that. The bulk of this reform does provide business tax cuts. Id knowledge we need a more competitive Corporate Tax system. If we look at recent behavior, if we look at recent corporate behavior, theres no evidence these additional corporate profits will actually translate into higher pay, i would simply ofnt out as much as 95 profits have been spent on share buybacks and dividends. It is not transferred down to workers. It should grow the economy. Not national debt. You start with 1. 5 trillion dollars in fact we will have. It will add billions of dollars to our annual payments, in your tax payments that are already in excess of 150 billion ear because of the mutually assured destruction we have when we dollarsted 220 trillion and adding more to that i think is a huge mistake. I know a number of members have said it is going to provide growth. I agree. But i challenge any member of the other side to show me a time when tax cut paid for with borrowed money, particularly at the moment where it led to any kind of growth numbers. Dont take my word for it. Alan greenspan said that just last week. Tax cuts, our own, full employment will not provide growth. My time is running out. A chance we will have and i will have a series of amendments i hope will gain your support and others. Its at for those companies, we will get a great rate on repatriation requirements for those companies to offer meaningful Work Training force programs for those low and moderate income workers. I offer plans that would encourage businesses to help pay back student debt. Have an investment that will insure rate cuts will only go into effect if we meet those revenues. If you leave the growth projections. Lets have a little skin in the game. A triggering cases projections are not met. Im going to exceed my time, it would have come i hope we get a chance to work on this together. Every shape your leadership. This is too important to work through. I hope we can slow the process down to get a right. Thank you senator. Thank you mr. Chairman. Let me start by saying that i am as we disappointed that start this debate, the two basic principles that i thought members of this committee would embrace are being violated. First, the spell is not in that middle income families. When you take a look at how much relief is given at the highest income levels versus the time of relief for middleclass families, you understand this bill is aimed at the wealthy. The modifications in the estate tax. The modification in the minimum state tax. That benefits high income families. An excess of 10 million middleincome families will actually pay more and income taxes. So it is not skewed toward middleincome families. This is tax towards relief and high income families. Why . Because you eliminate the state Tax Deductions for individuals but not for businesses, they can still take their tax reductions. Just individuals cannot. State of maryland, almost 50 use the state and local Tax Deduction. That is not fair. If we look at what the house did, some of the individual tax changes are temporary and the business changes were made permanent. We know this is not the last well hear of it. Youpected to get worse toward wealthy families. Toward more skewed wealthy families. I understand you like to use a magic wand and say we will deal with it. We have objective scorekeepers that have been traditionally write in their projections which poundsing to put three of sugar and a 1. 5 inch pound bag. We will increase the deficit and that is not a way for Economic Growth. There is a better way. You are creating problems. I mentioned state and local taxes. It is a double tax, not fair. I heard some of my republicans colleagues say we are doing this because it is for democratic states and look like it has a higher percentage of tax payers. By the way, their taxpayers in all states that will get hurt by elimination of state and local taxes. This is the United States. We can get into some nasty regional battles. We try to do the policy that is right a show in not to be able taxeses state and local on their income taxes is just wrong and not good policy. You are also creating other policies. Historic tax codes. Used in my state and around the nation to get communities that desperately need Economic Opportunity and that is just one example of a toll that is going to be we can. There is a better way. Want to create jobs, when we take a bipartisan proposal from the last congress, use the and put itrepatriate into infrastructure. Lets rebuild america. The president said he won at that but no. You are using the money for other purposes. Theres a better way for economic development. New market tax breaks. That will create jobs particularly in vulnerable communities that need our help. But no. Dont we do something to really improve Retirement Security . We had bipartisan proposals to do it. But no. We dont see any real effort made. Yes, there is a better way. Senator warner is right. Issues. Ompetition we are the only country in the industrial world that uses exclusively a cap taxes. Why are not we looking at alternative ways . Some of us put together proposals to do that, mr. Chairman is aware of the proposal i have. We get a better bill and it will stand the test of time. We are getting off to a good start here. Charm and two not a transformational bill you brought forward. You put together tax cuts and a package that makes little sense for middleincome families and for our national debt. Thank you mr. Chairman. There is no question we need tax reform that creates jobs and incentivizes companies to bring jobs back to america, helps Small Businesses, and puts more money in the park the middleclass families in the country. Across if that was in the bill in front of us i would enthusiastically supported however that is not what is in the republican bill. Instead it is essential to announce skin that failed every time you spend tried. We know millions of middleclass americans will actually get a tax increase. Since 1979 weve seen huge gains have grown by who 138 . Middleincome families are dealing at. The vast majorities of American Workers have seen their wages that may or go down. Profits have gone up, but not paychecks. Our republican colleagues have promised the same hardworking middleclass families that by once again giving the top 1 of the largest corporations huge tax giveaways, workers can magically receive 4000 or 7,000 or 9,000 raises. Mr. Chairman, the proof is in their paychecks. There is absolutely no evidence that it results in hiring more people or raising workerss wages. We have seen these promises before with the bush tax cuts in 2001, 2003. Our colleagues from across the aisles and on the floor that the bush tax cuts would aid the people and businesses to make up our economic machine and get it moving down the tracks at full speed. Unfortunately, that is not what happened. The train derailed. Growth was almost nonexistent. The deficit exploded. Middleclass family saw little lasting benefits but the huge deficits were used by the republicans is the reason that then they wanted to privatize social security, which fortunately democrats stopped. [in discernible] if taxnth, when asked cuts paid for themselves through greater Economic Growth, mr. Bartlett had some strong words. I quote that is a lie. It has always been a lie. There is not one iota of evidence to support this argument. In fact, he said wages fell for 10 years after a Tax Reform Act of 1986. Another part of what is happening now that is very concerning, mr. Chairman, the recently passed republican budget resolution makes it clear that after passing the huge trickledown tax giveaways, an increase in the deficit of at 1. 5 trillion dollars, the new step will be to use the newly accumulated debt to cut medicare and medicaid. In fact, almost 120 of cuts is in the budget. 20 colleagueur senate promised the people of kansas that giving huge tax giveaways would supercharge a safe economy. Unfortunately, it did not. The state of kansas bond rating fell. 48 out of 50 in job growth. A 900 main dollars budget 900 Million Dollars budget shortfall which caused some schools to cut school to four days a week. A coalition of republicans and demonstrates in the legislature reversed most of the tax giveaways. Middleclass families were sold a bill of goods and left with a mountain of debt. Michigan families deserve a 4000 or 9,000 or 7,000 raise. Republicans said they these promises and doubly these promises should be kept but if this trickledown scheme fails again and middleclass families just get mountains of debt and cuts in services, i believe congress should commit to stop giving tax giveaways, just like in kansas. I offer a number of changes that will ensure the benefits of these tax cuts go to middleclass families into promises they made to them will be kept in if my republican colleagues or seers, and i hope they are, in putting more money in the pockets of middleincome people, i hope you will join me. For hardworking families in michigan, the proof is in their paycheck. Mr. Tor carper thank you chairman. For more than nine years since i first read this committee, i reform. Ted to do tax i have believed a sensible, equitable, physically responsible tax plan could grow our economy, create good paying jobs, reduce wages somewhere families have a shot at the American Dream. Great affection for our chairman, Ranking Member, and many colleagues on both sides of the aisle but we have been working at it for a long time and unfortunately the process used to try to force is taxable across the finish line is not a credit to the bipartisan tradition of this committee. We should do better than this. Recall our friends on the other side of the island said they were working too fast on the Affordable Care act, saying they one\six of to remake the economy. We did not move too fast. Affordable care act, more than a dozen bipartisan hearings were held on the house reform bill that became the ford book air act. We held multibipartisan roundtables in several papers were published. Exhaustivedetailed to go station between three senior democratic members of this committee and three senior republican members of this committee that lasted for three months. Weve had no hearings on this tax reform. We have held no bipartisan negotiations. None. We felt no roundtables. None. The proposals released just four 1 6 ago attempt to make not of our economy but literally 100 of our economy. We have been told no nothing about how legislation might affect them. A truly bipartisan effort would not include ramming things through using the reconciliation process. A truly bipartisan effort would have begun months ago and wouldve been done through regular order, bipartisan engagement. Negotiations occurring over months. Members of both parties wouldve been sitting at the table. None of that applies. This process stands in stark contrast to the bipartisan senators to find Bipartisan Solutions to stabilizing the healthcare exchanges. A flawed process has produced a flawed product. This is not the kind of bipartisan reform we should be doing. As my colleagues may recall, when considering any tax or puzzle i look at for questions. Is it fair . Imnswer that question, afraid this tax bill will likely increase taxes on moods of middleclass families beginning next year and i fear this bill will make it harder for Many Americans to buy a home. I fear this bill will interrupt funding for health care as well as for college aid and job training as well as for transportation and crucial services. It offers large tax cuts to high income households. This bill makes it easy for family dynasties to give inheritances to their wealthy hieeirs. It eliminates the required minimum tax for the wealthiest americans. None of this meets my definition of fairness. The second question i was asked when faced with the tax proposals was this, does it foster job creation and growth . Were suffering the economic effects of large deficits. As more federal debt piles up, rates are likely to rise, making it harder and harder for americans to buy a home, finance a Higher Education and run a business. This bill includes reforms to the national tax system, but lacks the necessary guardrails to secure the offshoring of american jobs. As more american jobs go overseas as a result of this legislation, americans will be looking back at this moment, at this point in time. At this moment in congress. They will know who is to blame. The third question i always ask when faced with tax reform proposals is, does this make the tax code simpler or more complex . Theres still more work to be done to make the tax code simpler and unfortunately, the bill introduces new and complicated provisions. For example, new requirements to claim a Child Tax Credit that will make it difficult for americans to file taxes. Before than most important question i ask is is this fiscally responsible question the answer is, absolutely not. Far morecnd up being costly as the deficits continue to grow. 660 billion i think that was the deficit of the year that just ended. This is the longestrunning economic expansion of our country. The last thing we need to do is to continue to run up the deficit. When our economy is expanding we should be reducing the deficit. Truth be told, exploding our deficits to pay for tax breaks mostly for the wealthiest people in our country is not just unnecessary, but i think unconscionable. Not a single senator appear is opposed to everything in this bill. But the bulk of this bill is unacceptable, not all of it, but much of it. It is not good for American People, American Families, American Workers or American Businesses, or american children. It will be borne by future generations. Floor ilo and want to implore to the chairman and our friends on the other side of the aisle. We need something that is fair and that fosters Economic Growth, that signifies the tax code and reduces the deficit, not make it larger. We need a tax reform bill that is fair and fiscally responsible. Lets do tax reform right. Think you, mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, if i could say one last quick thing. Sitting next to you you have been a great advocate and in a blur of bipartisan compromises in the past. Thsis man sitting next to you, ron wyden, he has crafted not one but two major tax reform proposals in the last several years not one, but two. With his leadership and hopefully the support of peter here, we can doin this. Lets hit the pause button. I agree, we can do it. We have not been able, so far. A good day in the United States senate is hopefully a good day for the country, as we think about the opportunities to lower to lower taxes, and at the same time, create more jobs here at home. The two pillars of tax reform the first pillar is simple. Lets make sure more americans can take home more of their paychecks. What does that mean . Well, if you were a single mother, the average single head of household in this country makes less than 36,000 a year. What that means, take home more of your hardearned money. What it means is about a 55 cut. Burden underur tax our plan. Well, we talk about the numbers of tax reform we can easily get folks lost. You can see their eyes glaze over. But were not talking about the numbers. Tax reform is about the people. Not only is a single head of household, but also folks who have dependent children. 1650 is the new Child Tax Credit not 1000, but 1650. Because what we know in america, its getting harder and harder for everyday americans, the typical american household, to make ends meet. Not only are we looking for ways to help the typical american family, who makes about 73,000 a year, keep more of their hardearned money, abou a 1500 cut. Were also going to make sure we build and create the jobs of the future here at home by making america more competitive with our competitors around the world. A 35 tax rate, which is the highest in the industrial world. You differently, when compare us to our obcd partners, 35 , versus the average of 22 . What does that maean, the 13 . It means something very simple fewer jobs created at home. Well fill have a global system of taxing, versus the territorial system. Said differently, lets make sure that profit all over the world made by American Companies are able to be reinvested in our country without double taxation. Mr. Chairman, this is a generational opportunity that we eize, and that begins this week, in this committee when we have the votes to pass the tax reform on the floor. Tax reform, which is defined as tax relief for typical American Families, and the ability to create the jobs of the future here at home. It is a good day for all americans. Its a good day in washington when we focus on the American People. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Chairman thank you, senator. Ranking member . Mr. Chairman, i think we are awaiting senator nelson. You and i have brief wrap up remarks before we finish for the day. Mr. Chairman, you are a very skilled lawyer and as you know, i ran the Legal Aid Office for the elderly, so i am not in your league. If this was a lawsuit, i think we would stipulate to key facts. Key facts that the public would see, would take us in the right direction. Both sides have made it clear. We think the tax code is a dysfunctional mess i call it a rotting economic carcass. We are in agreement on that. Both sides say they want to have bipartisan tax reform. I think we understand why. Because to grow the economy, to encourage innovation, you need certainty and protect ability, and you only get that through bipartisanship. Your throwingted me all of these bouquets, saying the bipartisan bill we have with senator coates is like yours, but respectfully, they could not be more different. We tripled the standard deduction in the bipartisan bill with no takeaways. We dont take away those personal exceptions. Its important for a large family in missouri or maryland. A big difference on the middle class. We reward creating red, white, and blue jobs, jobs in america. The way this bill is written, those american multinational s get a better rate overseas, then they do for doing a business in the United States. Closerrd, we move to a relationship between income from a wage and income from capital. Senator mccaskill said Capital Gains and provisions help all stay the same and yet, in the bipartisan bill we reduced the differential between income from a wage and income from capital. And i think the way i would like to close our arguments for today is, if this committee did what the president has repeatedly said he wants done, and ill tick them off. A focus on the middle class i was in a session where he said specifically, it shouldnt go to people like me. And he said he doesnt want to hurt medicare and social security. By challenges we will have the exploding deficit. He wants it to be bipartisan. If we did, in this committee, on a bipartisan basis, what the president has said he wants to do, we could have a debate the committee would be proud of, it would get, in my view, 80 votes on the floor of the United States senate, and across america, people would say on an issue that really touches on the remaking of the American Economy for generations to come, democrats and republicans would crucially have found some Common Ground. Theres still time to do that. Thepect tomorrow because majority keeps altering their bill. Were going to see some new contortions to try to figure out how to make the republican bill, the partisan bill, fit the budget structures, while still being this multitrillion dollar bait and switch, taking from the middleclass and reporting to multinationals. It does not have to be this way, mr. Chairman. Thats the lesson of the last two and a half hours. Theres a lot of goodwill on both sides. We wouldwwas a lawsuit, stipulate to those things. Bipartisanfor a approach, a recognition of how egregiously broken the system is, and then get on with it. You and i have done a lot of bipartisan Work Together. This stands out as a great departer from that. And i hope, as we move to tomorrows session, where i think there will be very spirited questioning. The head of the joint committee on taxation, if we can still recover both substance and spirit of the finance committees storied history. I walked through the anteroom today and look through all of those great leaders democrats and republicans, they would not have much favorable to say about the way in which this is being proposed and there is still time to change. Chairman thank you, senator. I thought the hearing was a good hearing. I want to thank everyone who participated. Before we adjourn for the evening, i want to clarify a few points that have been raised. Ill boil it down to a few key points, so there will be no mistaking my meaning. This bill is not a massive tax cut on the wealthy. It provides acrosstheboard tax relief for those in the middleclass getting the largest proportional benefit. In fact, millionaires and deliver aes will larger portion of the tax burden under this bill. That is not just me talking. That is the joint committee on taxations conclusion. Ever to, number two, is this bill is not a massive tax increase on the middleclass, which i find surprising. No one can guarantee it will have the same impact on everything look taxpayer, but our bill comes very close. According to jcp, 90 of middleclass families will see their taxes go down. Or at the very least, stay the same. Thats an exceptional level of success that some of our colleagues would have us ignore, in favor of some raw numbers cited out of context. Number three, this was not a big giveaway to corporations. Virtually every member of this committee has at one time or another expressed support for reducing Corporate Tax rates. Our bill does so in a reasonable manner. Theing our country well in industrialized nations. Republicans and democrats recognize the need to allow American Businesses to be more competitive. Closer to a college that we are closer to a cobbler ccomplishing that goal in recent politics, not sincere views of policy. Producing and considering this bill has not been secretive. Theres nothing secret about this. The committee does not typically have specific hearings to examine specific pieces of legislation. That is not the tradition of the committee. We have been at this now for more than six years. Weve had 70 plus hearings, numerous reports, and countless opportunities and public discussions on the issues under consideration. Any demand for additional process, at this point, is likely more about delay than endeavoring any new information. Number five, the claims theat democrats have been shut out of the process are false. The democrats on the committee most recently or most certainly recall, the letter they all signed in which the issue preconditions and ultimatums for their participation in a bipartisan tax reform process. Ive essentially take them at their word. I have also stated in hearings, markups and on the senate floor, i want to see democrats at the table for this exercise, so long as they are willing to come without preconditions or unreasonable demands. Nobody took me up on this offer. No one. And my door has always been open. Everybody knows me. They have seen me manage three Major Committees in the u. S. Senate. They have seen the work across the aisle with all kinds of democrats throughout these years, some of whom were very difficult to work with. Some of whom were considered great democrats. No one took me up on this offer and my door has always been open. Now, we will get into these issues as this rolls on. I thought these points needed to be reiterated. Look, i have a desire to make this committee operate fairly and in a straightforward way with consideration to my colleagues on the democratic side, and my colleagues on the republican side. And i think i have a reputation for trying to do exactly that. Dontarent issues we understand. We had been working on them for decades. Frankly, a gets a little old sometimes when we hear the same old, worn out arguments every time when they cant, when they dont work with us to get these things done. And i respect my democratic colleagues. We have some of the brightest immigrants in the senate on this committee, which we should. I would appreciate it if they worked more with us and quickly bellyaching. Lets get some things done for the American People. They will ever have a chairman that is more willing to try to get things done in a bipartisan way than i am. I have got the reputation to prove that. A great liberal democrat was ted kennedy. And he found out that my gosh, we can Work Together, and he enjoyed it. And frankly, he was not easy to work with sometimes. But when it was all said and done, what he and i passed some of the most important bills in history and frankly, nobody is more proud of having those bills lanthan ted kennedy was. You could say the same thing about a host of others in the u. S. Senate as well. The point is not to play Party Politics on this committee but i am a tough guy and if i am not going to get cooperation, we are going to move ahead, whether you like it or not. I prefer cooperation. I prefer us working together. I prefer us using our best efforts to get the best tax system in the United States that we have ever had before. Thus far, i dont think we have worked together, to be honest with you in i am not sure we ever will on this committee. Its disturbing to me because this is the most important committee, specially on taxation any otherics, than congress in the United States. I do get along with senator wyden. We get along well. Mwe me often. He is always been open, straightforward about his feelings. I think i get along well with every other member on this committee, but they should not be up to democrats or republicans. Weve got to start working together in order to make this Committee Really reach its potential and live up to the potential it has lived up to in the past. We have one last person to call on tonight. Thats senator nelson. Bet you are glad that we have made these comments. Thank you for your consideration in waiting for senator nelson. Beyond andne second ill cut you off. Ok, well, i wanted to talk about bipartisanship. Chairman good. It is the best way to assure outcomes for the American People and it is what the American People want. I definitely know that is what people in florida want. Is anyone proud of the way this process has been going . I dont think so. Its all done by one party. And here we are, working on a major tax bill, a bill that will inevitably touch every single american in some way, shape or form and in some cases, in ways that the drafters of the bill dont even know. Yet, in completely rewriting the tax code, we havent had any hearings or any time to seriously debate the slew of policy changes that will affect peoples everday lives. Let me give you an example. We got word just the other day that the joint committee on taxation didnt know if the new pass through deduction in the chairmans markup included business income made in puerto rico. By the way, the people in puerto rico are hurting and the chairman knows that because he was the chairman of the task force, with senator rubio and i, we had the privilege of being a part of it. It would seem to me to make common sense that we really ought to get an inch on that before we move forward. The point is this. This isnt the way we ought to be operating. Everybody here knows it. We should be working together to negotiate a truly bipartisan tax plan, instead of throwing this altogether on the fly. This thing was introduced friday and here it is monday. Well, i believe that we have a duty to serve the American People to the best of our ability and i think on a major rewrite, of which i was in the congress the last time in 1986 that we voted out a major tax rewrite, we didnt do it this way. Working together in a bipartisan way is not a radical idea. Weve done it before. Have we come times together to find Common Ground . Just last year we passed the Retirement Enhancement and savings act. It came at of committee, 260. It started with you and senator wyden, hashing out differences to find a workable middle place, a consensus place. And then, sasas i said, dont forget the Puerto Rico Task force that you chaired. Or the Identity Theft related tax fraud bill. That took months of bipartisan talks before we had a package that everyone could agree on. I dont think it is too much to ask for this. A total rewrite of the tax code to go this way. So, if youre going to cut me seconds i will mention that this senator has done what senator grassley, senator cornyn, senator thune, and i have the privilege of chairing in the leadership and Commerce Committee we have all done bipartisan bills together. And if you want a good example of bipartisanship, look at how worked thune and i together on the Commerce Committee. I could mention senator burrow, senator isakson, all of which, in a will put those details into the record of where we have worked together. And so, the picture is clear. We all want tax cuts for the middle class. We all want to help Small Businesses. We all want to make the tax code simpler. Fairer, and more competitive. And im hopeful that this markup just window dressing. I hope that some of our amendments will be given serious consideration. Thank you, mr. Chairman, for kindness in recognizing the so i could give these remarks. And id like to insert my full statement in the record. Chairman no objection. We are really happy you could make it. We know you have had extra things on your plate. Were with you. As you mentioned, puerto rico and all of these issues that are puerto rico that you have to deal with on a daily basis that the rest of us might not have to deal with, when it comes up to the full senate. I appreciate the work you are doing. Let me just say this. I want to thank all my colleagues on this committee. It is a Good Committee we have great people on here, very intelligent people. Im seeing a move towards too much partisanship. If it keeps going that way, im the wrong guy to do that to. Because i can play that role very, very well. Found thated kennedy out and he realized it was better to Work Together. That is a great example, mr. Chairman. The role models that you and senator kennedy set. Chairman well, that was a good example. I think we set a pretty good example, too. Ron has worked very closely with me on this committee. Ive appreciated it. Ive noticed a little bit not by ron but a little bit of grouping on both sides. It really can be very irritating at times, especially when we are trying to run a really Good Committee and good in a way we all feel like we are heard. We might not all get what we want, but at least if we are heard, then we have a Good Opportunity to present our cases. Thats about all he Major Committee can do. Bis committee needs to do etter work than its been doing and i intend to see that it does. And i hope its bipartisan. But to be bipartisan, we both have to watch each others backs. We had to on things that are necessary partisan things. I think we can do that. But i have not seen it so far. This has been a good hearing today. I really appreciate those who thoseed before us and who committed the time and effort to this. Recess until will tomorrow morning, starting at 9 00 a. M. Here readyle will be to work and lets hope we can get this work done so we can move ahead. We are never going to agree on everything, we on the that. We are two different parties, we have different philosophies and different approaches, but we can be civil and do things that are hopefully openminded enough to include some of our colleagues ideas as well on both sides. With that, we will recess tomorrow until 9 00 a. M. [captions Copyright National cable satellite corp. 2017] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. Visit ncicap. Org] tuesday, the Senate Finance committee continues its coverage of the tax reform plan. Coverage begins at 9 a. M. Eastern on cspan3, online, or on the free cspan radio app. You can find the Senate Republican tax reform plan and summary on cspan. Orgs congressional portal. There is a plan to finish the bill on thursday with the senate bill skimming. With the senate bill near thanksgiving. Hingtonng up on was journal, discussing the future of the daca program. Efforts and Sexual Harassment on capitol hill. Be sure to watch washington journal. Join the discussion. Next, a look at the state of u. S. Manufacturing. This discussion is 45 minutes. Joining us for a conversation on the state of u. S. Manufacturing, to guests. He is the president for the alliance of may infection american manufacturing. Thanks for joining us. Lets talk a little bit about your movie. While are you focusing on why did you do it . People need to understand the relationship they have to manufacturing. Our goal was to create a documentary that would help people understand the history of manufacturing and the role they play as consumers. The film takes you through three to companies that are making