Today, Joint Economic Committee Democrats launched the seventh episode of “Opportunity Agenda,” a podcast that furthers the conversation on how to build an economic future where all American families have a fair shot at getting ahead. Episode 7, “Examining What’s at Stake With the CFPB,” looks at the actions that the Trump administration have taken at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) that are harming consumers, instead of protecting them as the agency is charged to do. The podcast comes ahead of today’s Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs hearing on the president’s nominee for CFPB director, Kathy Kraninger.
"People always ask, ‘Are we better off than we were two years ago?’ And the answer is yes."… "When I talk to people, they say they are not feeling the economic prosperity," said Senator Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, the top Democrat on the Joint Economic Committee. “Americans are not seeing the wage growth that they were promised from the tax cuts."
Aug 03 2018
Newsweek - Trump’s Tax Plan is Failing to Give American Workers the Wage Growth he Promised
Friday’s jobs report showed unemployment at 3.9 percent, an 18-year low. But even with historic lows, workers' pay has only increased by 2.7 percent since last year. With inflation hovering around 2 percent, that’s an adjusted 0.7 percent growth in earnings. A wage earner would have to bring in more than $570,000 to see that promised $4,000 increase in pay. Instead, the average worker is seeing a weekly pay raise of just $16.42. “This jobs report provides the latest evidence that the Republican tax law has done little to raise real wages in this country,” said Senator Martin Heinrich, ranking member of the Joint Economic Committee, in a statement.
Rep. Rosa DeLauro held a press conference Thursday to release a report outlining the effects of the Republican Tax Law. The report was prepared by the Democratic staff of the Joint Economic Committee. She used the report to highlight how the law is impacting Connecticut's working families and seniors. It details how the $2 trillion in tax cuts for millionaires, billionaires, and corporations come at the expense of Republican budget cuts to programs including Medicare, Medicaid, social security and the Affordable Care Act.
Aug 03 2018
Heinrich Statement on July Jobs Report
“We need to focus on why American families are struggling to get ahead and address those needs. Connecting communities to broadband, making post-secondary education more accessible and affordable, and ensuring that everyone has access to high-quality health care. That’s what we should be focused on. Instead of handing out additional tax cuts to those who need it the least, let’s get to work to address the real needs of American families across the country.”
Jul 30 2018
Op-ed: Tax breaks for wealthy paid for with deep cuts to Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security (The Hill)
Today is the 53rd anniversary of President Johnson signing the Medicare Act into law. When Donald Trump ran for president, he promised voters that he was not going to make any cuts to Medicare, Medicaid or Social Security that the 1965 law created and strengthened. Based on the last two decades of Republican leadership in Washington, we should have known better.
Since 2010, budgets proposed by now-Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) have called for cuts to these vital programs that help more than 100 million Americans stay healthy, provide for themselves, and achieve dignity in retirement. The latest Republican budget introduced in Congress advances the same failed ideas.
Their budget would replace Medicare’s current guarantee of coverage with a premium support voucher – ending the program as we know it. It cuts Medicaid by imposing arbitrary, draconian caps on care and forces burdensome work requirements on Americans who need health care, not more red tape. And it strips away tax credits that help Americans afford health insurance and reduce premiums and out-of-pocket medical costs.
They say that we don’t have a choice and can’t afford these earned benefits for Americans on a fixed or limited income without making drastic cuts. A recent report by the nonpartisan Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy points out why they are scrambling to take away these benefits: they have already given the money away to the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans.
The report points out that under President George W. Bush’s tax cuts and the massive tax giveaway that President Trump signed into law in December, by 2025, Republicans will have sent a whopping $2 trillion to this small sliver of the richest Americans. In their proposed budget, Republicans in Congress are now wanting to pay for those special interest tax breaks by taking that same $2 trillion out of Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and the Affordable Care Act.
These cuts will have a real impact on families we represent. In New Mexico, more than a million—half of all households in the state—rely on these programs to make ends meet. The same is true for more than 2 million Marylanders. Under the Republican budget, these families will now face reduced care, increased financial burdens, and many tough decisions. The Republicans’ intended trade-off means hundreds and hundreds of lower income Americans will be harmed to pay for just one wealthy recipient of their tax breaks.
We should be investing in the health and security of our families and seniors, not trying to stick them with the bill to pay for Republicans’ reckless tax giveaways and budget deficits. Democrats stand ready to strengthen Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid so they can continue to serve as a lifeline for Americans for decades to come. We are also committed to tackling the pocketbook issues that Americans care about, such as stagnant wages, skyrocketing health care premiums, and the rising cost of prescription drugs.
We recognize the need to address budget deficits. That’s one of the main reasons we were so opposed to President Trump’s unpaid-for tax giveaway. We also know that in issues of taxes and federal spending, we need a system of shared sacrifice and shared responsibility. However, asking families dependent on Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security to pay for tax breaks for the wealthiest among us—as President Trump and Republicans in Congress are asking us to do—cannot be the way to do that.
Sen. Martin Heinrich is the ranking Democrat on the Joint Economic Committee. Sen. Chris Van Hollen is a member of the Senate Budget Committee.
Find the article here.
Joint Economic Committee Democrats today issued a report in response to this morning’s release of the second-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) estimates by the U.S. Department of Commerce. The new JEC report details that large gains for a small group can keep total income growing, while many Americans continue to see their incomes shrink. The report also emphasizes that while GDP is an important indicator, it doesn’t show the entire country’s economic picture, and that the Republican tax plan does in fact benefit the wealthy while leaving working Americans behind.
Ahead of the 53rd anniversary of Medicare being signed into law on July 30, 1965, Joint Economic Committee Democrats released a report today that highlights the importance of Medicare to its beneficiaries, their families, and the economy in light of ongoing Republican attacks to cut the program. The report emphasizes that Congress should act to protect and strengthen Medicare, not undermine the program’s long history of success.
U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the Joint Economic Committee, delivered the following statement at today’s hearing entitled “The Innovation Economy, Entrepreneurship, and Barriers to Capital Access.” In his remarks, Senator Heinrich highlighted the recent Joint Economic Committee Democrats report, “Investing in Rural America,” that emphasizes that tribal and rural communities often struggle to reach mainstream financial institutions, and need federal resources to successfully secure capital and technical assistance.
Jul 18 2018
Roll Call - Democratic Staff of Most Powerful Senate Committees Have the Least Racial Diversity
At the other end of the Democrats’ panel diversity rankings, Indian Affairs took the top spot for the second straight year. The staff is entirely nonwhite.The second-most diverse Democratic staff is found on the Joint Economic Committee, which is half white. The Senate Aging Committee comes in third.
