{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.barrasso.senate.gov/barrasso-gop-tax-cuts-put-more-money-in-peoples-pockets/", "Barrasso: GOP Tax Cuts Put More Money in People\u2019s Pockets", "2026-04-15", "2026", "2026-04", "Republican", "Senate", "WY", "John Barrasso", "B001261", "www.barrasso.senate.gov", "barrasso", "https://www.barrasso.senate.gov/newsroom/news-releases/", "scraper", "\u201cRepublicans permanently lowered taxes. We did it for hardworking families and small businesses. In doing so, we made it easier for all Americans \u2013 whether working or retired \u2013 to keep more of what they earn. More than 53 million Americans have benefited from at least one of the new Republican tax cuts.\u201d\n\nWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) today highlighted the direct benefits Americans are receiving from the Working Families Tax Cuts law.\n\nClick HERE to watch Senator Barrasso\u2019s remarks.\n\nSen. Barrasso\u2019s remarks:\n\n\u201cToday is April 15. That means it is Tax Day in America.\n\n\u201cI just heard the Minority Leader come to the Floor, and it sounds like he\u2019s almost despondent that this year the American people are able to get higher tax refunds than in the past. Because of what we\u2019ve been able to do and pass, people are keeping more of their hard-earned money. For people that are filing their taxes for the first time under this new tax law \u2013 the Working Families Tax Cuts \u2013 they are seeing that they are keeping more. And this is what we promised \u2013 to put more money in people\u2019s pockets.\n\n\u201cI hear about it at home in Wyoming. In Dubois, I recently spoke with veterans and their families. In Sundance, Gillette, and Laramie, I visited with students. In Lusk and in Newcastle, I sat down with farmers, ranchers, and small business owners. Across the board, we talked about new opportunities that they\u2019re experiencing as a result of the law since Republicans cut taxes dramatically. How it appears in their daily lives and what it means to them and their families. These families in Wyoming aren\u2019t alone. Americans across the country are seeing smaller tax bills and larger tax refunds.\n\n\u201cThe Internal Revenue Service released data today on the tax refunds. The average refund this year is over $3,400 per family. Now that\u2019s nearly $250 per month in people\u2019s pockets. That\u2019s much higher than it was last year. These are the refunds people are getting.\n\n\u201cAnd yet when I hear the Senator from New York, he referred to the amount of money people are getting back in refunds \u2013 I think he said the word were \u2018duds.\u2019 Maybe to him that\u2019s a dud. Maybe to him in New York City that\u2019s a dud. But for working families in Wyoming, $250 a month means a lot of money in their pockets. When you go to the gas station, the grocery store, when they plan what they want to do over the summer, all of those things. This is real money in the pockets of Wyoming families and American families. And the best we can hear from the Minority Leader is it\u2019s a \u2018dud.\u2019\n\n\u201cThat is not what I\u2019m hearing around my home state. People understand money in their pockets matters to them and matters to their families, even if the Democrats don\u2019t believe that or the Minority Leader doesn\u2019t see it the way we see it. But in so many ways, he doesn\u2019t. Because we think it\u2019s important for people to keep more of their hard-earned money, and it\u2019s a direct result of the bill that we passed \u2013 the Working Families Tax Cuts law.\n\n\u201cDemocrats tried to do the opposite last year. They wanted to pass a $4 trillion tax increase on the American people. That\u2019s where they were headed \u2013 and they voted for that. They voted for the largest tax increase in American history. And Senator Schumer today talked about a poll. And what did he say? He said that Americans think they\u2019re paying too much in taxes right now. Can you imagine what they would be saying if they were paying what they were paying now plus 4 trillion additional dollars in taxes? Why in the world would the Minority Leader come to the Floor and put together a group \u2013 lead the charge \u2013 to raise taxes by $4 trillion if he comes to the Floor and talks about the fact Americans think they are paying too much in taxes? I think we\u2019re paying too much in taxes. I want to cut more taxes. That\u2019s what the people of Wyoming want, that\u2019s what Americans want, and that\u2019s certainly what Republicans want. So, it\u2019s interesting to hear the Minority Leader talk about these refund checks that are putting more money in people\u2019s pockets and saying, \u2018Well, it\u2019s a dud.\u2019 It\u2019s not a \u2018dud\u2019 for the people of Wyoming. They\u2019re encouraged by what we\u2019re doing, and they want us to do even more. And we need to do more.\n\n\u201cDemocrats voted to raise taxes on families, on workers, and on small businesses. Republicans permanently lowered taxes. We did it for hardworking families and small businesses. In doing so, we made it easier for all Americans \u2013 whether working or retired \u2013 to keep more money in their pockets. More than 53 million Americans have benefited from at least one of the new Republican tax cuts. That\u2019s a lot of people.\n\n\u201cIf you are a senior and you receive a Social Security check, you are benefiting for the first time on our \u2018No Taxes on Social Security\u2019 pledge. This is the new $6,000 deduction for seniors. Already, 30 million seniors have benefited.\n\n\u201cIf you are a mother or father with children, you are benefiting from the expanded Child Tax Credit \u2013 $2,200 per child per year. Millions of parents have enrolled their children in Trump Accounts. That\u2019s a big deal. For parents with newborn children, these savings accounts get $1,000 deposited into them straight from the U.S. Treasury. It happens immediately when your child is born. There are groups and individuals across the country who are matching those contributions into Trump Accounts. All of this in an effort to get these young people off on a good start.\n\n\u201cIn Wyoming and across the country, more than 6 million Americans are benefiting from the \u2018No Tax on Tips\u2019 provision. These are waiters, barbers, bartenders, and tour guides. They have claimed an average deduction of over $7,100.\n\n\u201cMore than 25 million Americans have benefited from No Tax on Overtime. These are firefighters, police officers, and nurses. They are linemen and coal miners in Wyoming. They have claimed an average deduction of over $3,000 on overtime. Hardworking Americans are being rewarded \u2013 rewarded for working more. The extra money they earn goes directly to their bank accounts \u2013 not to bureaucrats in Washington.\n\n\u201cThe Working Families Tax Cuts law protects two million family-owned farms and ranches from the dreaded Death Tax. Instead of being forced to sell their land or small business to pay taxes to Washington, families in Wyoming are now able to plan for their future for generations to come.\n\n\u201cThe Working Families Tax Cuts law also allows businesses to immediately deduct up to $2.5 million in new equipment. That means more jobs. It means more growth. More people in the workplace. It means more opportunities for farmers, ranchers, and Main Street America.\n\n\u201cBecause of lower taxes and more opportunities, workers across our nation are seeing bigger paychecks. Real wages are up this year. This is significant progress.\n\n\u201cThe only people seem to be upset about lower taxes, bigger refunds, and higher wages are the elected Democrats in this body who voted for a $4 trillion tax increase. Democrats want to raise taxes on the American people. Democrats believe that the money you earned isn\u2019t yours. Democrats believe that the money you earn belongs to the government. That\u2019s why the Democrat Party is known as the party of high taxes. It\u2019s not just here in the United States Senate. It is in the states and big cities run by Democrats across the country.\n\n\u201cThis year, Democrat Abigail Spanberger was sworn in as Governor of Virginia. Democrats now control the House, the Senate, and the Governor\u2019s Mansion. Since they\u2019ve taken over in January, Democrats have introduced 50 new tax increases. Democrats want to raise taxes on barber shops, nail salons, dry cleaners, and gyms. Democrats are proposing new taxes on firearms and ammunition in Virginia. That\u2019s what happened now that Virginia elected Democrats.\n\n\u201cDemocrats like to use the word \u2018affordability.\u2019 Apparently, Democrats\u2019 idea of affordability is higher taxes paid by working families so they can spend more money on liberal social programs.\n\n\u201cRepublicans know the best way to make America affordable is with good jobs, growing paychecks, and lower taxes. That is exactly what we are seeing today as people file their taxes and see their larger refunds this year.\n\n\u201cThe American people know the money belongs to them, not Washington. They\u2019ve earned it. They should keep more of it. Republicans trust people at home to know best what they want to do with that money. How to spend it, save it, and invest it.\n\n\u201cThis Tax Day, the American people have more money in their pockets because Republicans passed the Working Families Tax Cuts law. Republicans will continue to fight for an America where families keep more of what they\u2019ve earned and make the decisions about how to spend it.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-04-16T05:48:36Z", "2026-04-16T05:50:08Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.barrasso.senate.gov/barrasso-gop-tax-cuts-put-more-money-in-peoples-pockets/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.830440316349268, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}