Emanuel Cleaver: Build Back Better Act will lower costs, level playing field for American families

(From Fifth District Congressman Emanuel Cleaver)

As we approach our National Day of Thanksgiving, we have much to be thankful for this week.

Last Monday, I watched from the lawn of the White House as President Biden signed the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act into law. 

I was proud to support this historic and long overdue investment in our crumbling national infrastructure, as it will send $9 billion to Missouri to modernize our roads, bridges, public transit, broadband, drinking water systems, ports, airports, and more. 

Not only will this create tens of thousands of good-paying jobs across Missouri, but it will increase our economic growth and allow every community in our state to compete in the 21st century digital economy.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is a truly landmark piece of legislation, and I'm thankful President Biden was able to bring Congress together to pass it on a bipartisan basis, showing that the United States can still put partisan differences aside to tackle the biggest challenges facing our nation.

And that's not all.

Last week, after months of vigorous debate and deliberative negotiations, the House of Representatives passed President Biden's Build Back Better Act. 

The President's signature economic proposal would cut taxes for middle-class families, lower drug costs for American seniors and those with disabilities, provide universal pre-K and affordable child care to working families throughout Missouri, make the single biggest investment to act on climate in our nation's history, and expand health care coverage to millions more Americans--all without raising taxes on families making less than $400,000 by making sure the ultra-wealthy and corporations finally pay their fair share in taxes.

I was proud to support this historic bill--which will now go to the Senate to be taken up for consideration--and I wanted to take this opportunity to provide some insight into a few key provisions within the legislation, including:

Cutting taxes for middle-class families by extending the expanded Child Tax Credit, which was passed in the American Rescue Plan Act in March and has resulted in the largest one-year reduction in child poverty in American history. 

This tax cut will continue to provide middle-class Missouri families with $3,600 per year for every child under 6 and $3,000 for every child 6-17-years-old. Additionally, the bill would also provide a tax cut of up to $1,500 for 338,000 Missouri workers by extending the American Rescue Plan's expanded Earned Income Tax Credit.

Lowering prescription drug costs for seniors and families by allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices, capping insulin prices at $35 per month, and guaranteeing that seniors never pay more than $2,000 per year for their drugs under Medicare Part D. 

As millions of Medicare beneficiaries pay more than $6,000 per year in cost-sharing, this provision will save families thousands of dollars every year that can go toward other essential items like rent, groceries, clothing, and more.

Implementing universal, free preschool for every 3- and 4-year-old in Missouri. Currently, only 14% of 3- and 4-year-olds in Missouri have access to publicly-funded pre-K, while the average cost in the state is $8,600 per year for those who can't access publicly-funded preschool. 

The Build Back Better Act would enable more than 115,000 additional Missouri children to access free, high-quality pre-K--which will strengthen outcomes for our children and our workforce in the years to come.

Providing affordable child care to Missouri families by enabling the state to provide child care for approximately 380,000 children (ages 0-5) per year from families earning under 2.5 times the state median income. The bill guarantees that these families would pay no more than 7% of their income on high-quality child care.

Making the largest investment to combat climate change in history, which will set the United States on a path to reduce greenhouse gas emission to 50-52% below 2005 levels by 2030, create millions of good-paying green jobs, grow domestic manufacturing, and protect our communities from extreme weather events like floods or tornadoes.

Addressing the needs of rural America by investing tens of billions of dollars in rural job-promoting projects, giving critical debt relief to farmers and ranchers in need, providing substantial funding to support rural fire departments, and promoting agricultural research and development.

Making generational investments in higher education, workforce training, and nutrition assistance.
Ensuring corporations and the ultra-wealthy pay their fair share to pay for all of the above provisions. 

To ensure the Build Back Better Act is fully paid for and does not increase the deficit, the bill will establish a minimum 15% tax on all U.S. corporations earning more than $1 billion per year in profits, ensure companies pay a minimum 15% tax on profits earned overseas, and provide a new surtax on the wealthiest Americans--those making over $10 million per year. The bill also provides a 1% surcharge on stock buybacks, which are frequently used by corporate executives to enrich themselves rather than invest in their workers or grow their business.

In conjunction with the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the Build Back Better Act will create millions of good-paying jobs across the United States of America, lower costs for families, and lay the groundwork for increased economic growth over the next decade. That's precisely what Democrats envision when we talk about building back better than before the pandemic, and I will continue doing all I can to ensure this economic plan is implemented in the coming months.