Thomas Suozzi

Mr. SUOZZI

Mr. SUOZZI. Madam Speaker, tonight, over the next hour, I, along with my colleagues from both sides of the aisle, will rise to advocate for the repeal of the unjust and unfair SALT cap and the full restoration of the SALT deduction. There are five basic arguments that I, along with my colleagues, will flesh out over the next hour. One, the SALT cap was specifically and unjustly targeted against the residents of New York, New Jersey, California, Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, Michigan, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Rhode Island, Hawaii, and other congressional districts with high local and State taxes. Two, middle-class families, which in these States can earn between $100,000 and $200,000 per year, are disproportionately impacted in a negative way. Three, these same middle-class families, as well as wealthy families, are incentivized by the loss of the SALT deduction to leave States with high State and local taxes, thereby leaving a gaping hole in the revenues that are used by these same States to fund their programs. When wealthy individuals and families leave our States because they have been incentivized to leave because of the loss of the SALT deduction, it is middle-class and low-income people who are left behind to hold the bag. Because of the gap in revenues, they will either face higher taxes, which is unacceptable and unsustainable, or reduced services, which is unlikely. Four, the SALT cap is anti-union because one of the main reasons that taxes are higher in SALT States is because we pay our teachers and our public safety and our civil servants significantly higher wages than our low-tax competitor States. Five, many States with high State and local taxes that have been negatively affected by the SALT cap are net donors to the Federal Government. That is, these States contribute more to the Federal Government in income taxes than they receive in Federal programs and contracts. They are donor States. Why are the taxes higher in New York, California, and other SALT States? Why are the taxes lower in Florida, Texas, and other low-tax States? The reason for our higher taxes is because we insure our children. New York State and California have some of the lowest rates of uninsured children in the Nation, while Texas and Florida have some of the highest rates of uninsured children in our country. We adopted the Affordable Care Act; they refused to. Our States have the highest rates of union employees. Our low-tax competitors don't like unions. In fact, they actively oppose them. They have right-to-work laws. They don't pay their teachers well. In States like New York, we have one of the greatest mass transit systems in the world that delivers the lowest carbon footprint per capita of any city in the world. In California, they have been implementing policies to address climate change for decades. Yet, in low-tax States, they have no mass transit to speak of, and they are still debating whether climate change is a hoax. Secretary Yellen has said that we need to stop the international race to the bottom by creating a global minimum corporate tax. Well, we need to discourage a race to the bottom right here in the United States of America. It is cheaper not to insure your children. It is cheaper to use nonunion labor. It is cheaper to have lax environmental regulations, unregulated utilities that shut down in cold weather, or septic tanks instead of sewers that cause red tide in your waterways. Each State, each city, each laboratory of democracy has decided how they want to govern, what services they want to provide, and how much in taxes they will collect. By removing the SALT deduction, the first deduction in the Federal income tax code, a deduction that has been in place for over 100 years, by capping this deduction, we are crippling the very States, cities, and local municipalities that are the economic engines of our Nation. By capping the SALT deduction, the long arm of the Federal Government is reaching into our States and local governments to try to determine what programs they should provide, how much they should collect in taxes. They are breaching the covenant of federalism that has been in place for over 100 years. That is why, tomorrow, will be holding a press conference with the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the National League of Cities, and the National Association of Counties to showcase how the SALT cap is devastating our local governments. Last week, we held a press conference with unions to show how they are negatively impacted by the SALT cap. That is why, tonight, so many of my colleagues are here to join me in our call to repeal the unfair and the unjust SALT cap.

Mr. SUOZZI

Mr. SUOZZI. Well, I thank Mr. Pascrell very much for his comments. I wanted to mention that the gentleman served as the mayor of his hometown. I yield to the gentleman.

Mr. SUOZZI. Madam Speaker, I appreciate Congresswoman Kim so much and thank her for being here this evening. You have been hearing about the SALT cap and the effect on your constituents. Have they been talking to you about this a great deal? Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Kim) for the purpose of a colloquy.

Mr. SUOZZI. And are people talking about leaving the region because of the effect of the taxes? I yield to the gentlewoman.

Mr. SUOZZI. Madam Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Kim for her comments. At this time, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell), who has been a real leader on the issue of SALT, and who has been outspoken ever since 2017 on this issue. We are grateful to him.

Mr. SUOZZI. Madam Speaker, I just want to--some people, when they hear you talk about this, and they hear a home worth $500,000, $600,000, $700,000, $800,000, they think, boy, that person must be really rich. What they don't seem to understand is that in my State, in your State, and many of the States represented here, those are actually middle-class home values.

Mr. SUOZZI. So we have to recognize that the country is not the same all over. If you make $150,000 in your household, you are in the top 20 percent of the income earners of the country. However, if you make $150,000 in your district or my district, you are not a rich person. If you make $150,000 in Oklahoma or in Iowa or North Dakota, you may be a wealthy person. So we have to recognize these regional differences. People say: Well, why should we be subsidizing what you are doing? And the gentleman points out so clearly in what he just spoke about that we are, in fact, in our States, subsidizing the rest of the country. We are net donors and they are net takers.

Mr. SUOZZI. Congresswoman, thank you so much for being here tonight and for speaking out on this very important issue. We are grateful for your presence here tonight. Madam Speaker, at this time I would like to go to the middle of the country, to the State of Illinois, where my good friend who serves on the Ways and Means Committee really is one of the brightest minds in Congress today, who wants to speak to us about the SALT deduction and its effect on his district. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Schneider).

Mr. SUOZZI. Congressman, I want to thank you so much. You hit on the topic of fairness so many times. Many of our States and our local governments have relied on this deduction for literally a hundred years, and it was suddenly taken away in 2017. It has had a dramatic effect. Can you briefly touch on fairness one more time?

Mr. SUOZZI. Congresswoman, thank you so much. We really appreciate you being here this evening to talk about this. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Gottheimer), back across to the other side of the country, one of my neighbors and good friends who serves as the chair of the Problem Solvers Caucus. He has been one of the strongest advocates for the reinstatement of the SALT deduction and the repeal of the SALT cap.

Mr. SUOZZI. Thank you, Congressman. It really galls me sometimes when I hear people boasting about the fact that they are leaving our States and moving to other States, when, in fact, we are subsidizing the rest of the country with our tax dollars. Thank you so much for your leadership on this issue. We are very grateful. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Porter), one of the most progressive Members of the United States Congress, and also one of the great intellects who has been so passionate about this issue and has some very interesting things to share with us.

Mr. SUOZZI. Congresswoman, I ask you, please go into it a little bit further about this concept of double taxation. We have heard it several times here tonight. Just explain what you mean by double taxation. Madam Speaker, I yield to the Congresswoman for a colloquy.

Mr. SUOZZI. It is very important, Congresswoman, what you point out. This is a mandatory payment. You are not spending the money to go on vacation; you are not spending money to go out to dinner; you are not building an addition onto your home. This is a mandatory expense that you must pay, as you said, to your county, to your village, or to your State. That is no longer available to you. In other States where the overall income is exactly the same, but the mandatory taking is much smaller, the tax bill is not as burdensome.

Mr. SUOZZI. Congresswoman, I want to thank you so much for being here. We have had some Republicans across the aisle here tonight. We have had some moderate Democrats here tonight. And we have progressive Democrats, such as yourself, here. I think it is important that we point out that actually the SALT deduction is in keeping with progressive policy, because it supports those States that want to promote progressive policies within their States.

Mr. SUOZZI. Madam Speaker, Mr. Gottheimer has been a great champion on this issue. I am grateful to him for pointing that out. I know, in the case of my State of New York, in the past 5 years, New York has sent $150 billion more to the Federal Government than they have received back in Federal services or Federal contracts, whereas Mitch McConnell's State in the past 5 years, this same period, they have received $150 billion more in services and contracts than they have put back into the system. The gentleman's advocacy on this issue has been stellar. I am grateful to him for being here tonight.

Mr. SUOZZI. Madam Speaker, I appreciate the time that my colleagues and I have had tonight to make these different points. I want to close by saying this is about fairness. It is not fair. It is not fair that the State and local tax deduction has been in place for over 100 years so State and local governments have relied on this deduction in order to fund the programs that we have. It is not fair that people are being taxed on taxes that they have already paid. It is not fair that the taxes that are being paid in these States are no longer deductible on people's income tax returns. It is not fair that, after all these years of relying on this deduction, it is no longer in place, and my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have been boasting about people leaving my State and going to their States while we are, in fact, subsidizing those very States. This is a battle that is going to continue. Hopefully, over the next few months, we will be able to build a coalition, together, of Democrats and Republicans who recognize that this unfairness has to be addressed and that we need to restore the State and local tax deduction for the benefit of the residents of my State and people throughout the United States of America who are relying on basic fairness. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SUOZZI

Mr. SUOZZI. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor a giant of the judiciary; a member of the Greatest Generation; an independent advocate for the least, the lost, and the left behind. Yesterday, the Eastern District of New York, the residents of Great Neck, his family, and all justice-seeking people lost a giant intellect and champion. Judge Jack B. Weinstein was 99 years old. Judge Weinstein served as a Navy lieutenant during World War II. After the war, Weinstein graduated from Columbia Law School on the GI Bill and went to work for the NAACP; clerk for the Court of Appeals; teach at Columbia; serve as the Nassau County Attorney; and, in 1967, President Johnson appointed him to the Federal bench. My father, also a World War II veteran and member of the State judiciary, always pushed me to seek out and learn from this brilliant jurist when I clerked in the same courthouse. Judge Weinstein encouraged me throughout my career. Judge Weinstein created the concept of a special master in complex mass tort cases. He protested mandatory sentencing guidelines that he believed betrayed the concept that the punishment should fit the crime, especially in drug cases. Time does not permit me to properly extol his intellect, compassion, and impact, but on behalf of the people of the Third Congressional District of New York, I offer my condolences to his family and I hope they will take comfort that his life will never be forgotten.

Mr. SUOZZI

Mr. SUOZZI. Madam Speaker, today we have the opportunity to begin to right a century-old wrong. I rise to support the creation of a Congressional Gold Medal in honor of the Harlem Hellfighters. Thousands of Harlem Hellfighters were African-American soldiers who signed up to join the U.S. Army in World War I. Sadly, but predictably, White soldiers were unwilling to serve alongside Black soldiers, and these brave men were assigned to join the French Army. But that didn't stop them. The Harlem Hellfighters, wearing U.S. uniforms but issued weapons and helmets by the French, went on to face more combat time than any other regiment during World War I. No Harlem Hellfighter was captured as a prisoner of war, and they never gave up any ground. The bravery, dedication, and sacrifices of the Harlem Hellfighters who served 191 days under near-constant enemy fire impacted the outcome of World War I, but instead of receiving a hero's welcome, they returned home to racism and race-fueled violence. There were three dozen Hellfighters who came from my hometown of Glen Cove. In 2019 the family of Sergeant Leander Willett came to tell me about their father and grandfather. He had served in France and had been stabbed by a German bayonet and been the victim of mustard gas attacks, but never received a Purple Heart. He returned home and died in 1956 without ever being properly recognized and honored for his service to our country. He joined his fellow comrades who have been lost to history. In November of 2019 we surprised the Willett family with a posthumous Purple Heart for Sergeant Willett for wounds received as a result of hostile actions in France on October 4, 1918. I then approached my colleague Adriano Espaillat, who represents Harlem, and the chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, Joyce Beatty, about collaborating together to attain a Congressional Gold Medal. They both immediately and enthusiastically agreed. We went on to obtain 310 bipartisan cosponsors of this bill and expect strong support today. I would like to especially thank Chairwoman Waters for her and the Financial Services Committee's support. On behalf of the Willett family, the families of dozens of Harlem Hellfighters from my hometown, and a grateful Nation, we say thank you to this body for putting aside partisanship and helping to right a century-old harm. It is never too late to do the right thing.

Mr. SUOZZI

Mr. SUOZZI. Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Rabbi Ian S. Jacknis who, after 28 years is retiring as Rabbi of the South Huntington Jewish Center. His dedicated and compassionate tenure as Rabbi has touched the lives of many in his congregation through the years. He is admired by many and I join his congregation in wishing him the best as he moves on to the next chapter in his life. I include in the Record the following tribute to Rabbi Jacknis that was prepared by the South Huntington Jewish Center: On the Occasion of the Retirement of Rabbi Ian S. Jacknis as Rabbi of the South Huntington Jewish Center, celebrating his 28th anniversary as our beloved Rabbi, we honor Rabbi Jacknis for his excellence and service to his congregation and the Melville community. We hereby recognize and acknowledge his tenure as Rabbi by sharing some of his biography and contributions. Rabbi Jacknis brought his love of Judaism and unique blend of warmth and spirituality to the South Huntington Jewish Center in the summer of 1993, and quickly became known, both inside the synagogue and throughout the surrounding communities, as being welcoming, responsive, insightful and compassionate. During his tenure he has fostered a renewed feeling of unity and enthusiasm in the congregation, as well as a marked increase in membership. Shabbat services, especially, are infused with his special spirit, and he has brought a variety of new initiatives to SHJC. Rabbi Jacknis is highly respected by his congregants and his peers. He is a Past President of the Rabbinical Assembly of Nassau-Suffolk as well as the Suffolk Council of Jewish Organizations. The Rabbi also serves as the Jewish Chaplain to the Melville Fire Department. Rabbi Jacknis attended the undergraduate Joint Program of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America and Columbia University, receiving two bachelor's degrees in 1977. He later attended the Seminary's Rabbinical School, taking classes at the University of Judaism (now the American Jewish University) in Los Angeles, at Neve Schechter in Jerusalem and at the Seminary's main campus in Manhattan. In May of 1983 he received both his Master's Degree and Rabbinic Ordination. Recently, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the Jewish Theological Seminary. Rabbi Jacknis is married to his wonderful wife, Suri Jacknis, who serves as Director of Educator Networks at The Jewish Education Project. She is a progressive leader in the Jewish world, and SHJC is fortunate to have had the two of them as leaders of their community. Together, Suri and Rabbi have three children, a son Noam (married to Candace), a daughter Yael, (married to Jacob Davidson) and another daughter Nava (married to Natanel Fuchs). Rabbi and Suri are the proud grandparents of Ethan, Braydon and Liat.

Mr. SUOZZI

Mr. SUOZZI. Mr. Speaker, 100 years ago, my father was born in a small medieval village in the mountaintops of southern Italy. He came to America as a young boy, and in his St. Dominic's High School senior yearbook, he wrote that his goal in life was ``to become a real American.'' Twenty-seven years ago, I served as the young mayor of my hometown of Glen Cove. I addressed the issue of a growing population of new immigrants from Central and South America who gathered on street corners looking for daywork by creating the first day-worker site anywhere on the East Coast of the United States of America. Today, those same men who gathered on street corners have their own businesses, own their own homes, and their children went to school with my children. One Dreamer from El Salvador, who graduated high school with my daughter, went on to graduate from college with a degree in biomedical engineering, got a master's in biomedical engineering, and is now pursuing a doctorate in the same subject. Today, I will support the American Dream and Promise Act, for Mario, for Nelson, and for all the other Dreamers whose goal is, like my father's, to become a real American.

Mr. SUOZZI

Mr. SUOZZI. Madam Speaker, 100 years ago my father was born in a small medieval village in the mountaintops of southern Italy. He came to America as a young boy, and in his St. Dominic's High School yearbook, he wrote that his goal in life was to become a real American. Twenty-seven years ago, I served as the young mayor of my hometown of Glen Cove. I addressed the issue of a growing population of new immigrants from Central and South America who gathered on street corners looking for daywork by creating the first dayworkers' site anywhere on the East Coast of the United States of America. Today, those same men who gathered on street corners have their own businesses, own homes, their children went to school with my children. One Dreamer from El Salvador who graduated from high school with my daughter went on to graduate from college with a degree in biomedical engineering, got a master's in biomedical engineering, and is now pursuing a doctorate in the same subject. Today, I will support the American Dream and Promise Act for Mario, and for Nelson, and for all the other Dreamers whose goal is like my father's, to be a real American.

Mr. SUOZZI

Mr. SUOZZI. Mr. Speaker, the other side of the aisle is peddling a false narrative. This bill is not loaded with pork. It is not a blue State bailout. It is a comprehensive plan to help people crushed by the virus beat the pandemic into the ground and ensure a rapid economic recovery. Yet my friends across the aisle and their cable news and social media enablers continue to promote fake news. Let's set the record straight. It is true that 9 percent--their favorite talking point--9 percent, or $171 billion is for vaccines, testing, and other healthcare infrastructure. Well, what about the other 90 percent? $424 billion for $1,400 stimulus checks, $350 billion for struggling State and local governments, $246 billion for unemployment insurance, $219 billion for children and childcare so parents can return to work, $178 billion to help reopen schools, $109 billion for farmers and small businesses, $28 billion for restaurants and live venues, $40 billion for renters and homeowners who need assistance. Let's pass this bill. Stop the phony-baloney talking points and get the American people the relief they need.

Mr. SUOZZI

Mr. SUOZZI. Madam Speaker, this pandemic has been cruelly uneven. Some people remain unscathed. Wall Street is booming, online retailers are surging, some work remotely with their incomes intact, and some families remain healthy. Yet 17 percent of Americans go to food banks every week. One in six people can't pay their rent. Some people are enduring a long winter in sub-zero temperatures, unable to pay their heating bill. Twenty-five percent of the people who make under $40,000 a year are now unemployed. State and local governments crippled, businesses and restaurants closed. Worst of all, we all know people who have gotten sick and died. This legislation is not a blue State bailout or liberal handout, it is how we address the suffering that has crippled our country, it is how we move forward and beat this pandemic. We have this great and awesome responsibility, this great and awesome honor to try to help people facing some of the most desperate times they have ever faced. Let's pass this comprehensive plan. Let's move our country forward, and let's do it together.

Mr. SUOZZI

Mr. SUOZZI. Mr. Speaker, as co-chair of the Labor Caucus, I rise in support of the National Apprenticeship Act. The Labor Caucus advocates for America's working men and women, and this legislation helps America's working men and women. You see, America continues to create enormous wealth, and that is a good thing. The problem, however, is that wealth has not been shared with the people who go to work every day. Since the 1980s, the Dow Jones has gone up 1,500 percent, 15 times, and the GDP has gone up 800 percent, 8 times, but workers' wages have increased by less than 20 percent. Everybody in America believes, or should believe, that if you are willing to go to work every day, you should make enough money so that you can buy a home, have health insurance, and retire one day without being scared. Unfortunately, that is no longer a reality in America. We know the more you learn, the more you earn. Sixty percent of Americans, however, do not graduate from college. Working with President Biden, the Apprenticeship Act will make the skills necessary to be a welder, a plumber, a computer machinist, a carpenter, or a skilled laborer available so American working men and women, whether they go to college or not, can live the American Dream again.

Mr. SUOZZI

Mr. SUOZZI. Mr. Speaker, I support invoking the 25th Amendment to remove President Trump from office. Former Congressman Tom Lantos, a Holocaust survivor, would often say the veneer of civilization is paper-thin. We are its guardians, and we cannot rest. I was sitting right there on Wednesday when they told us to take out our gas masks because the rioters had breached the Capitol. I was standing right over there as the Capitol Police locked and barricaded the Chamber doors. I heard what I thought were gunshots as the rioters broke the windows in the main Chamber door with a metal pipe. I was standing right over there when the woman was shot outside the Speaker's lobby, and the police radios rang out: ``Shots fired in the Capitol. Shots fired in the Capitol. Everyone down.'' The veneer of civilization is paper-thin. Thousands of people, criminals, desecrated our Capitol, breaking windows and doors, attacking our brave officers, and vandalizing offices. Rioters, wearing Army fatigues with Confederate and Trump flags, donned Nazi swastikas. That and I saw one man who wore a shirt saying: ``Camp Auschwitz Staff.'' Our President instigated this. The President's duty is to protect our Republic and its people. He built a mob, filled it with lies, and encouraged its fight to stop the steal. Now, we hear intelligence reports that thousands of armed militias and white supremacists are planning to come again on or before January 20. My colleagues, my friends on the other side of the aisle, we must together call upon the President to denounce this violence, to tell his supporters to stay home. Mr. President, you must please put America first. You must call off this attack. And if not, you must be removed.