Government affairs

Last week, without a single hearing, Democratic input, or expert analysis, congressional Republicans successfully jammed the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” (H.R. 1) through a House-Senate conference committee. This week, they are trying to rush final passage in Congress―before the American people can figure out how bad it is.

The final bill provides:

• Permanent and massive tax cuts for corporations and other special-interest provisions that will incentivize companies to outsource American jobs overseas and develop other tax avoidance schemes.
• Temporary and much more modest tax cuts for households that will expire after 2025, though a change in the way tax brackets are indexed for inflation will actually permanently increase taxes on 93 million Americans who earn less than $75,000 a year.
• A repeal of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) individual mandate, raising health insurance premiums for a majority of Americans and resulting in 13 million people losing insurance by 2027.
• A huge increase in the federal budget deficit that will add $1.45 trillion to the national debt over the next decade, opening the door for future misguided budget cuts to letter carrier retirement and health benefits as well as to vital programs such as Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.

Please take a minute to call your House representative and both of your senators now and tell them to vote against the tax bill. Tell them that it is grossly unfair and bad for our country. Dial the U.S. Capitol’s switchboard at 202-224-3121 and be ready to provide your ZIP code to get connected.