Majority Leader Schumer Floor Remarks Announcing Senate Floor Vote To Advance The Tax Relief For American Families And Workers Act
Washington, D.C. – Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) today spoke on the Senate floor on filing a cloture on the motion to proceed to the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act, setting up a vote later this week. Below are Senator Schumer’s remarks:
Tonight, I am very happy to announce that I have just filed cloture on the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act, a bill to expand the Child Tax Credit, expand the Affordable Housing Tax Credit, help small businesses with the R&D credit, and lift half a million kids out of poverty. For the information of senators, the step I take tonight sets up a cloture vote on Thursday.
It’s time to get this bill done right away. This bipartisan bill passed the House overwhelmingly, 357-70, and we hope this week, Senate Republicans will join us.
Democrats strongly support moving forward on this bill because it is filled with good news for our kids and small businesses and jobs and housing.
For one, Democrats strongly support expanding the Child Tax Credit, because we know it will do immense good for tens of millions of families, so many kids. In fact, one of the very first things this majority did in 2021 was expand the Child Tax Credit significantly under the American Rescue Plan, that cut child poverty in close to half. That turned out to be an enormous success, but unfortunately that provision expired. We have a chance to help more kids get out of poverty through this important provision once again.
The bipartisan tax package will be a boon for small businesses, because it will reward them and other businesses for investing in R&D and help them pay for new equipment so they can compete against larger competitors. This will inevitably mean more jobs for Americans. When businesses get this tax credit, for investing, they are going to hire more people, more workers. And it particularly benefits small businesses that don’t have the flexibility to do these things on their own without this tax break.
And of course, I’m very happy this tax package delivers big wins on something near and dear to my heart: affordable housing. The bill would expand the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, LIHTC, very significantly. The LIHTC is one of the most effective tools for increasing the supply of affordable housing units. I was insistent that this measure go into the bill, and I said it was non-negotiable. Well, I am glad it’s in this bill.
When it comes time to vote later this week, the American people will see for themselves who in reality supports the fine provisions of the tax bill and who does not.
When we vote, the American people will see for themselves who in fact favors expanding the Child Tax Credit and taking so many kids out of poverty, and who opposes it.
The American people will see who supports expanding affordable housing and who doesn’t.
And the American people will see who stands up for small business, and who stands against them, as they have so requested this important R&D credit.
I urge my Republican colleagues not to stand in the way of helping parents and small businesses and families keep a roof over their heads when it’s time to vote on Thursday.
I want to thank Chairman Wyden for his great leadership on this package, and I thank all the members of the Senate Finance committee for their great work.
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