Motion to Discharge

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. REED. Mr. President, I rise today to urge my colleagues to support the swift passage of the Inflation Reduction Act.

In the wake of COVID-19, global supply chains have been strained. There has been shipping disruptions, and Putin's illegal invasion of Ukraine has added to this. As a result of these many factors, inflation is up in almost every single country across the globe. The United States is among the world's wealthiest and most productive and diversified economies, but no nation on Earth is immune to the forces of inflation, particularly when it comes from so many different directions.

Let's remember also, 2021 was a huge year for U.S. economic growth. In fact, last year, the U.S. economy grew at its fastest pace since 1984. Our unemployment rate is back down to 50-year lows, wages have risen for many, and there is a job literally for any American who wants to work and is looking for work. Nobody thought that type of growth was sustainable, especially with the global economic headwinds we are facing and will continue to face.

The fact is that Americans are forced to pay inflated gas prices at the pump because of the immoral and illegal invasion of Ukraine by Vladimir Putin, because of the cartel--OPEC--that controls prices, and because of our failure so far to invest in clean energy, and that has made our economy crack.

So the question before us is: How do we help our economy gain firmer footing and lower prices for consumers; how do we make our country more energy independent; and how do we strike a blow for fairness and financial responsibility and make things better for families, businesses, and communities?

The Inflation Reduction Act accomplishes all of those goals. It makes forward-looking policy adjustments and investments to shore-up the economy. It takes long overdue steps to help lower out-of-pocket costs for things like energy, prescription drugs, and healthcare. It will strengthen America's energy independence and enhance our national security by moving production lines and jobs from China and other places back to the United States.

And don't just take my word for it. A wide array of economic experts have confirmed this bill will ease inflation in three ways: by lowering energy costs for families and small businesses, by cutting healthcare costs for millions of Americans and by ensuring wealthy Americans and large corporations pay their fair share.

Republican and Democratic Treasury Secretaries have said this, as have over 120 of our Nation's leading economists, including seven Nobel Prize winners. The Inflation Reduction Act will also reduce the deficit by more than $100 billion, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. And budget experts agree, it will save another $200 billion by empowering and equipping the IRS to crack down on tax cheats and enforce tax laws already on the books.

So independent arbiters are clear: This bill is good for the family budget and for the national budget. It is good for the health of our communities and our planet.

And here are some of the highlights. Let's start with the cost of prescription drugs. According to Families USA, nearly 3 in 10 American adults--that is about 80 million people--have not taken required medicine due to its high cost. For decades, the drug companies have taken advantage of every avenue to keep prices high.

They argue that the cost is justified in order to fund research and development, but that is not really what is happening. The bottom line is, drug companies are not playing fair. In fact, they are charging inflated prices even on old medications, insulin being the classic example. Developed more than 100 years ago, the developers basically made their product available to everyone. They did not insist upon patent protection. Yet, the price of insulin, of a 100-year old drug, has gone up dramatically.

The Inflation Reduction Act will put the brakes on this type of profiteering. Under this bill, the government will finally be allowed to directly negotiate lower drug prices for Medicare beneficiaries. And I am fighting to include, as I mentioned before about insulin, a $35 cap on insulin costs for millions of Americans in this bill. And I must applaud Senator Warnock for his leadership on this effort.

It is long past time to get this done. The Department of Veterans Affairs already does it and saves veterans and taxpayers billions of dollars a year. The Inflation Reduction Act would also limit drug price increases to the rate of inflation. It also caps out-of-pocket costs at $2,000 annually for older adults buying prescriptions from pharmacies. It would also provide free vaccinations for seniors, and it helps keep health insurance affordable for millions of Americans.

Let's not forget, cutting healthcare costs for millions of Americans is a direct attack on inflation. So the benefits here are both health- related and economic.

Now, let's talk about how the bill will reduce energy costs and address climate change. The American people recognize that climate change is a serious threat. It fuels extreme weather, environmental degradation, and natural disasters. We are witnessing these phenomena at this moment all across the country. And, frankly, I haven't seen the kind of rapidity and severity of storms like this in sheer number in my time.

This is a result of our neglect of the climate crisis. And I must also applaud my colleague Senator Whitehouse because he has been a voice since his first day here in this Chamber about the dangers of climate change, the cost to families, and the cost to our environment.

Of course, all of these climate effects lead to food and water insecurity, economic disruption, and, indeed, human conflict. One of the areas which is most concerning to our Defense Department officials is the follow-on effects of famine and disruption of economies. It usually creates a whole generation of young people without any gainful employment but with access to weapons, which leads to instability and violence--threats to the whole world. And eventually threats to us.

Just this week, we had a hearing in the Banking Committee on the economic costs of climate change. One witness cited a particularly eye- popping statistic from OMB, that our lack of action on climate change costs the Federal Government up to $2 trillion per year. That is $2 trillion with a T. So the cost of our efforts to reduce this will be more than exceeded, according to this number, by the benefits. And good economic analysis suggests, when you have a proposal in which benefits far outweigh cost, that proposal is something to consider.

The Inflation Reduction Act stops kicking the can down the road and takes urgent, overdue action to confront climate change and economic challenges head on. I don't have to remind anyone here that we have been talking about climate change for years and years and years. And now, we have a real opportunity to take positive steps. And if we don't, what we see now is upsetting, to say the least, but it is accelerating and you can sense the economic crises and the environmental crises we see all around us will grow.

Now, this legislation would invest $369 billion in affordable clean energy, energy security, and initiatives to help combat climate change and make America more energy independent.

I will give you a very good example up in Rhode Island. We have the first offshore wind field in the United States off of Block Island. It was built and provided up to 300 workers--union workers mostly--with good jobs. It will continue to help employ people as it is maintained. It has provided us, the whole region, with an example of where to go. And now, you have significant wind farms that are being proposed in Federal waters off of Massachusetts and off of Long Island. This will bring energy without pollution. That is something that will benefit all of us, both in our pocketbook and in our well-being.

This is really a historic investment. And the savings will pay off for families and the planet month after month, year after year. It is something that we owe the next generation because right now, we are prepared to hand off to the sons and daughters and grandsons and granddaughters a world that is environmentally challenged, to say the least. And they will look back on us and say: You had an opportunity, and you failed.

We cannot fail.

Now, a report by nonprofit group Rewiring America found that the tax incentives included as a part of the $369 billion dedicated to climate change initiatives in the bill would save the average household $1,800 per year on energy costs. This will incentivize the use of heat pumps, the use of solar panels--a much more practical and cost-saving energy tool than what is available today.

The Inflation Reduction Act also sets up America to out-innovate and out-compete other countries and strengthens domestic clean energy manufacturing and reinforces our supply chain, making America more energy independent and self-reliant.

I want to make the important point that under the Budget Act, this bill must be paid for. And rather than cut Medicare or Social Security as some of my colleagues on the other side like to suggest, this bill strikes a blow for fairness when it comes to our Tax Code. It sends a signal to the middle class that wealthy individuals who wish to avoid taxes will no longer be able to easily evade taxes because we are enforcing the auditing mechanisms at the IRS so that the laws are followed more scrupulously, and that will result in benefits to all of us.

It sends a signal to working families that the 150 most profitable companies will pay a minimum tax of 15 percent rather than zero, as is sometimes the case. It is not fair for a multi-billion dollar company to game the tax system to avoid any payment, while a truck driver or a custodian is paying 20 percent of their income to taxes--or even more.

It sends a signal that private equity and hedge fund managers who claim their income is carried interest will have to step up and pay more. Indeed, as the President stressed, this bill is written so that no family that makes under $400,000 will see their taxes go up. That is what the President promised, and that is what this legislation will do.

So no one should be out making the claim that this hurts the middle class and the tax cuts will be paid for by them. In fact, it increases the taxpayers in our system. And any examination of our present system shows it is grossly unfair.

I will end with the words of the five former Treasury Secretaries, including one appointed by former President George W. Bush, who all agree that the Inflation Reduction Act will, in their words, ``help increase American competitiveness, address our climate crisis, lower costs for families, and fight inflation--and should be passed immediately by Congress.''

Let me also quote over 120 leading economists who shared a similar message, writing: ``This historic legislation makes crucial investments in energy, health care, and shoring up the nation's tax system. These investments will fight inflation and lower costs for American families while setting the stage for strong, stable and broadly-shared long-term economic growth.''

This isn't a partisan issue for economists, and it shouldn't be a partisan issue in Congress. The bottom line is that Congress has an opportunity to help lower prices for consumers and invest in scalable new energy technologies and solutions that will strengthen our economy and make the U.S. and the planet more secure, more prosperous, and more resilient.

We must seize the moment. The time to act is now. Generations from now, they will look back at this moment and ask the question: Did we stand up for them, for this country, for the planet, and for the future, or did we fail?

I urge us all to stand up and succeed.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source