{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.portman.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=6ABB460D-980F-4BC6-89ED-36EBB31041C8", "ICYMI Akron Beacon Journal Op-Ed from Senator Portman: \"Tax Relief for the Middle Class and a Boost to the American Economy\"", "2017-12-07", "2017", "2017-12", "Republican", "House", "OH", "Rob Portman", "P000449", "www.portman.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Last night, Senator Portman was appointed to serve on a House-Senate conference committee to finalize the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act, once-in-a-generation legislation that will help middle-class families, create more jobs, and increase wages for American workers. The legislation, which passed in the Senate last week, will help save the typical Ohio family $2,375 annually. Portman worked throughout the process to develop and help improve the bill, including adding several amendments during consideration by the Senate Finance Committee.\u00a0In an op-ed in the Akron Beacon Journal, Portman outlined why tax reform will be good for the middle class and businesses throughout Ohio and the United States, and his hopes that the House and Senate will send a final bill to the president\u2019s desk before Christmas.\r\nSays Portman in the piece: \u201cA family of four at the median income level will save about $2,400 a year on their taxes. For a family in Akron, or across the state, that money staying in your pockets rather than going to Washington can help make a car payment, pay for health care or save for retirement.\u201d\r\nExcerpts of the op-ed can be found below and the full editorial can be found at this\u00a0link.\r\nTax Relief for the Middle Class and a Boost to the American Economy\r\nBy Rob Portman\r\nAkron Beacon Journal\r\nDecember 6, 2017\r\nLast week, after years of discussion over tax reform ideas, the Senate passed legislation that will provide tax cuts for middle-class families and make our tax code competitive so America can once again become the best place in the world to do business.\r\nThe most immediate benefit will be the tax cuts for the middle class. For more than a decade, expenses have increased \u2014 health care being the biggest expense \u2014 while wages have stayed generally flat. Republicans and Democrats alike have called for relief for people feeling this middle-class squeeze \u2014 and the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act will finally deliver it.\r\nOur plan will double the child tax credit to $2,000, double the standard deduction to $24,000 per family and lower tax rates for families across middle-class income brackets. The independent Tax Foundation estimates that a single parent with two kids earning $52,000 a year would see a 36 percent reduction in their taxes. A family with two kids earning $85,000 a year would see a 20 percent reduction in their taxes. And a family with two kids earning $165,000 a year would see an 8 percent reduction in their taxes.\r\nFor Ohio, the Tax Foundation estimates this means that a family of four at the median income level will save about $2,400 a year on their taxes. For a family in Akron, or across the state, that money staying in your pockets rather than going to Washington can help make a car payment, pay for health care or save for retirement.\r\nMiddle-class families will get immediate relief through the tax cuts in this plan, but families will also benefit from reforms on the business side in the form of more jobs and higher wages in America. \u2026\r\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "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.portman.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=6ABB460D-980F-4BC6-89ED-36EBB31041C8"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 3.5332059487700462, "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"}