Paul Mitchell

Mr. MITCHELL

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, this is the second week of the tax truth squad effort to share the facts, the real facts about the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, and the impact it has already had on the American economy and the American people. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to be here with my fellow colleagues representing Michigan and Illinois. These two States include diverse industries and diverse people, from farmers, to bankers, to manufacturers. I am humbled to represent the hardworking people of the 10th Congressional District and the Midwest. This is exactly what the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has done: helped our constituents work every day supporting their family and helped their local economy. My colleague before me proceeded to speak about we should pay attention to the needs of those close to and living in poverty. Well, I wish he had stayed. I grew up in poverty. Like many in Michigan, I grew up in a large family. I have six brothers and sisters. My dad had a good job building trucks in a line at General Motors. My mom often had a full-time job to help make ends meet. That is why I committed to supporting policies that create real economic growth and economic opportunity for families like the one in which I grew up. I was but a young pup in 1986, the last time our Tax Code was modernized. Since then, the Tax Code grew to 74,000 pages of rules and regulations that have only confused people. You would need to be a wizard to understand what is in the Tax Code as it stood at the end of the year. That is why I promised my constituents, when I came to office, when I ran for office, I would work hard to achieve meaningful tax cuts and reforms for the American people. I believe Americans can, and should, make independent decisions about the use of their own money, the money they work for, not the government. The government shouldn't come first. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act allowed hardworking individuals and business owners to do just that. Across the Nation and back home, we have already seen the direct impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. More than 400 companies have already announced pay raises, bonuses, and increased 401(k) contributions and benefits, or, in the case of utility companies, lowered rates. Direct bonus announcements have already reached over $3 billion across this Nation. Let me repeat that: $3 billion. Companies in Michigan have already committed more than $180 million in bonuses to employees. A couple of examples: Fiat Chrysler, one of the State's largest employers, is reinvesting its tax savings to its employees in our community, in addition to giving a $2,000 bonus to 60,000 employees. And that is in addition to profit sharing as part of their contract. Fiat Chrysler announced it will move heavy-duty Ram truck production from Mexico to Macomb County: a $1 billion investment that will create 2,500 jobs. In my district, Michigan's 10th, Lakestone Bank & Trust, a small community bank, operating in Lake Lapeer, St. Clair, and Macomb Counties, gave hourly employees $1 an hour raise. I know some consider that to be crumbs. Where I grew up, $1 an hour more is real money. They gave all of their salaried employees a $1,000 bonus saying: ``We are very appreciative of all Lakestone Bank & Trust employees and certainly what they have accomplished over the years. . . . This is a once-in-a- lifetime opportunity, and we know we want to reinvest much of the savings''--in the tax bill--``back into our bank, and the first place we are going to put it is into the hands of our employees. Employees are our most important asset.'' Stories like this are not unique. From CVS to Chipotle, and AT&T to Wells Fargo, they are reinvesting tax reform savings in our hardworking employees in our communities throughout the country. This is the second week of the tax reform truth squad--we are calling it--an initiative where Members from States across the Nation are invited to tell their stories about the benefits of tax reform. There are countless stories they are anxious to express. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Walberg), one of those Members, my colleague, serving on the Energy and Commerce Committee, a defender of a strong rural economy and a good friend, representing the Seventh Congressional District.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the topic of my Special Order.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Walberg for his comments. I failed to recognize that I serve with Mr. Walberg on the Committee on Education and the Workforce, on which he is a subcommittee chair. So I thank him for joining us. I made a notation that I want to share with everyone tonight as we move forward. With the changing of the standard deduction, with the nearly doubling of the standard deduction, about 90 percent of taxpayers will be able to file their taxes on a form about this size. They will be able to file their taxes like this, rather than the pile of paperwork they have dealt with for years. Here it is on a larger scale. Most are going to be able to simply file their wage and compensation income and use the standard deduction. They will be done except for a few other tax credits we will talk about, the tax credit they can get, for example, on investment tax credit or family child credit. We will talk about that. But most Americans can file like this. That is one of the things we wanted to achieve, one of the great achievements of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Mr. Speaker, next I yield to Congressman Fred Upton, who represents Michigan's Sixth Congressional District, the former chairman of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, another colleague of mine from Michigan, the senior member of our delegation, experientially only, not age, with decades of experience in Congress focusing on job creation and economic opportunity for our State and for our Nation.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Upton for joining us. I appreciate him taking time out of his busy schedule to talk about how the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has impacted his district and the State of Michigan. Let me state, as we get our next speaker to come forward, that in my district alone, the average savings for the average filer in my district is $2,700 a year. Now, I know that some of the colleagues on the other side of the aisle refer to that as crumbs, as meaningless, but that is real money that allows people to make a difference in their lives, to move forward, make decisions about fixing their houses, go on vacation, put a downpayment on a new car, all things that wouldn't be possible. More importantly, that is money they worked for. That is not money somebody gave them. That is their money to begin with, and they get to keep it. That is what is so important about it. Mr. Speaker, our next speaker who wants to come forward and talk about his district is Representative Shimkus, who, as Mr. Upton said, was a conferee on this bill. Mr. Speaker, I yield to Congressman John Shimkus, who represents the 15th Congressional District, a member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, a conferee on the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, and who has been an advocate for smaller government for years.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for clarifying that, and I certainly hope people listen to the difference because some people don't understand that. I appreciate the gentleman taking time to join us tonight. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman representing the 12th District of Illinois (Mr. Bost), a small family business owner himself.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Shimkus for the enthusiasm, the detail on the impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Mr. Speaker, we are going to continue on this conversation and talk a little bit about the trade States, because it has had a great impact not only on Illinois, but also on Michigan. Joining us at this point is Congressman Mike Bishop, a neighbor of the 10th Congressional District, a member of the Committee on Ways and Means that had a direct impact on this bill. He has been a leading advocate for a fair and simple Tax Code. He represents the Eighth Congressional District. Mr. Speaker, I yield to Congressman Mike Bishop.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his feedback on the impact of the Tax Cuts bill, and I thank him for taking time out of his schedule. Next, I have the privilege of recognizing a key player in the effort to reform our Tax Code and cut taxes, the chairman of the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Tax Policy. I thank the gentleman for his leadership on this and, hopefully, continued success on our tax laws. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from the Sixth District of Illinois (Mr. Roskam).

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I will ask the gentleman to stay for just a moment for a real quick question. First, I would say that the Bears is his example--and my example is Steve Yzerman was a rookie in the NHL and captain of the Detroit Red Wings. If you ask a young hockey fan now who Steve Yzerman is, they would look at you blankly. That is how long ago tax was tackled. I have a question for the gentleman. Ninety percent of our taxpayers, we believe, are going to file a standard deduction, but we kept--we talked about it a great deal. We kept some key tax cuts in the Tax Code to actually help families. Can the gentleman briefly talk about, maybe, the family and child tax credit and what we did with that and why we think that is important.

Mr. MITCHELL. I want to be clear with folks. There is a child and family tax cut, the earned income credit, and the higher education credit, and those are all credits against your tax liability. This is not simply a deduction. After taxes are determined, those are credits back, not a tax deduction.

Mr. MITCHELL. People don't understand the difference some days.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for joining us this evening. Next is Congressman Adam Kinzinger, who serves on the Energy and Commerce Committee as well as on the Foreign Affairs Committee. Like many Members around here, he is a very busy man. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman representing the 16th District of Illinois (Mr. Kinzinger) to talk about tax cuts in his district.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Kinzinger for joining us this evening. I appreciate the detail in his district. We are going to continue with Illinois for a bit here. I guess it is Illinois' night for awhile. Mr. Speaker, I now yield to the Representative from the 14th District of Illinois, Congressman Randy Hultgren, who has consistently been a voice of business owners across America through his work on the Financial Services Committee.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Hultgren for joining us. I appreciate him taking the time to explain the importance of this in his district. My next speaker has extensive experience on economic development and creating a better business climate. Mr. Speaker, I yield to Congressman Darin LaHood, representing the 18th District of Illinois, a member to both the Joint Economic Committee and Ways and Means Committee.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, could the Congressman stay one moment for a quick question?

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, he was talking a little bit about the depreciation allowance and what that depreciation means for small business--especially small business. One of the important things we did was to change how the taxes are structured for a path we call pass-through to small businesses. Maybe he could explain that briefly, what was done to help small business be viable and grow in this country.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. LaHood for detailing that, and I appreciate him taking time this evening. We now will rotate back to Michigan, a fellow freshman, good friend of mine, also a proud Yooper. I am proud to introduce my fellow colleague in the freshman class from the northern regions of Michigan, who, throughout this process, served on the Budget Committee and had input into what this bill is. Mr. Speaker, I yield to Congressman Jack Bergman from the First District of Michigan.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congressman Bergman, and we are wishing for spring in northern Michigan sooner than mid-May. Mr. Speaker, I want to wrap up this evening by talking a little bit about what all my colleagues spoke about: our principles. Our principles were that people who worked hard should keep more of their money, that their families and their pocketbooks should come first and not government come first. We have achieved that with the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. How did we achieve that? We almost doubled the standard deduction. For a married couple, the standard deduction is $24,000 this tax year--$24,000, and you pay no taxes. We lowered the individual tax rates for all tax brackets. We simplified the Tax Code so that taxpayers can file their taxes, 90 percent of them, on a form about this size. No, you don't have to mail a postcard. You put it in an envelope. But the good news is you don't need multiple pages. You don't have to hope that you have got a wizard to help you. Ninety percent of Americans can fill out a few items on here, include the W-2, and send it on in. We expanded, as was discussed earlier, the child tax credit from $1,000 to $2,000 for single filers and married couples to help parents with the cost of raising their children. We made that fully refundable up to $1,400. That is, even if your taxes are zero, you get a refund from the government for $1,400 to help you with childcare and taking care of your dependents. For taxpayers that the standard deduction did not work as well, we kept a number of important deductions, the three most popular ones: Charitable deduction, kept that; the home interest deduction, we kept that; and State and local taxes. What that means is, for 95, 98 percent of my tax filers in the 10th Congressional District, even if they fill out their deductions rather than do the standard deduction, they are much better off. Since the tax reform bill passed, as I stated earlier, 400 companies, in about 70 days, have given a pay raise or a bonus or both, increased benefits, 401(k) contributions. In the case of utilities, you heard in Michigan, almost $400 million a year in rate cuts, something we hadn't thought about, hadn't anticipated--real money saved by our consumers. Four million people have received a special tax bonus, resulting in about $3 billion injected into the economy. In Michigan, it is $180 million already. That is real money. It is not economic Armageddon. I am proud to have been part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. We will continue with the Tax Truth Squad every week through the summer to send a message to the American people that we are looking out for their paychecks and the well-being of their family. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. MITCHELL

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material germane to the topic of this Special Order.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I am here with Mrs. Walters from California, who is the co-chair of the Tax Truth Squad. This has been an exciting first 14 months for me serving Michigan's 10th Congressional District. I had the privilege of representing the freshman class in House leadership. Tax cuts and tax reform are important to me, as I grew up the oldest of seven kids in a family in which dad built trucks in a line and my mom worked full time more often than not to support our family. I saw firsthand the difficulties experienced to make ends meet and support that family. That is why I am committed to ensuring policies that create jobs, economic growth, and wages in the pockets of people who go to work every day and get a paycheck. Until last December, it seemed to be only a dream that we could achieve meaningful tax cuts and reform. It had been more than 30 years since that had been updated. Since that time, layers of rules and new additions to the Tax Code had grown that into a beast of 74,000 pages. You would have to be a wizard to know what was in it. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act addressed these problems and put more money in the pockets of hardworking Americans so they can make decisions about how to use their own money. Up until now we have talked about the possibilities and the dream of tax cuts and reform. Now we can talk about the realities of what tax reform is bringing to America. Representative Walters and I have organized a series of floor speeches that begin tonight a little later than originally planned. Each legislative week we have designated one or more States' delegations that will join us and talk about tax reform, tax cuts, and the impact it is having on their constituents and their districts. Texas is kicking off that initiative tonight. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Mimi Walters), who is the co-chair of the Tax Truth Squad.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, as we go through the evening, I will try to highlight some important components of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. I think one of the most important components is the larger standard deduction. We have doubled the standard deduction from $12,000 to $24,000 for married couples. We created a simpler filing process. What we created was, in essence, a filing process where 90 percent of Americans can file their taxes on a form about this size, significantly better than the current Tax Code. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Brady), who is a good friend, a colleague, and the gentleman who led us through the whole battle to achieve this epic change. Congressman Kevin Brady is the author of the legislation and a true champion for American taxpayers. He is the Representative of the Eighth District of Texas and the chairperson of the Ways and Means Committee.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Brady for his leadership on this issue. He talked a little bit of the impact it has had on his district in Texas. Here, we have a sign. Since the tax reform bill passed, more than 400 companies have given a pay raise, a bonus, increased 401(k) contributions, or, in the case of utilities, lowered their rates. At least 4 million Americans are receiving special tax reform bonuses. The direct bonus announcements already, to date, exceed $3 billion. There are companies like JetBlue, KeyBank, and DTE Energy in my district back home, Alaska Airlines. We could go through the list. Four hundred companies have already announced major changes and major investments. These have a major impact throughout the country and on our constituents. Next, we are going to hear from another colleague and a good friend. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the Representative from the 25th District of Texas (Mr. Williams), who has consistently been a voice of businessowners throughout his district and America through his work on the Financial Services Committee.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, some of our colleagues on the floor, as we worked toward passing this epic reform, talked about the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act as being Armageddon, as being the end of the world. Let's talk a little about that. On CNBC on February 20, they had a survey: Q1 Small Business Confidence Index saw an increase of 5 points. Forty-six percent of those surveyed say tax policy changes will have a positive effect on their business, up from 38 percent in the fourth quarter. The number of those same tax policy changes that have a negative impact fell sharply to 23 percent. Only one in three respondents expect to receive a tax cut. The independent Tax Policy Center estimates that four out of five Americans will actually see a tax cut at the end of the year. Not quite the Armageddon some of our colleagues predicted. We are now going to hear from another colleague. Representing Texas' 22nd District and a vocal advocate for a simpler and fairer Tax Code, Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Olson).

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for joining us. We were talking about some of the improvements in people's lives that the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has created. Over the weekend, I received a message from one of my constituents, Mark. I know him. He and his wife work hard. They don't make a lot of money. But I got a nice note saying: Thank you so much. They met with their accountant about this year's taxes and projected next year. He said they will have another $2,700 a year in their pocket that they will have to make decisions about fixing their house or maybe taking a little vacation up north. These are the things the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has done. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Sessions), a good friend of mine who has been an instrumental Member in bringing the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act to the House floor. His work on behalf of the 32nd District of Texas and all Americans has certainly been recognized. He is also chairman of the Rules Committee.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate Mr. Sessions joining me tonight. As I said, along the way, we are going to highlight some aspects of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Real quickly, I want to outline that up to $24,000 of a married couple's income is taxed zero. There is no tax on that. We continue to allow families to write off State and local taxes, up to $10,000. We help families with children in taking care of their loved ones by doubling the child tax credit and preserving the child and dependent tax credit, while also preserving the adoption tax credit, all critical things to families and helping support families through the Tax Code. Mr. Speaker, I next yield to the Congressman from Texas (Mr. Flores), a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee with decades of experience in job creation and providing opportunity for economic growth.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I continue with the discussion of the impact to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act by introducing a colleague on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the defender of a strong rural economy, representing the 36th District of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield to Congressman Brian Babin.