{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.thune.senate.gov//public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=4DF29235-10B4-44CC-8B75-01767ABE68A1", "Thune: Tax Reform Will Increase Economic Growth", "2017-11-07", "2017", "2017-11", "Republican", "House", "SD", "John Thune", "T000250", "www.thune.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON\u00a0\u2014\u00a0\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\tU.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today discussed why reforming the tax code is essential for increasing economic growth in the United States. Thune explained that by reforming our business tax code, in particular, we can boost economic growth, which would allow American businesses to thrive. It would also allow individual, hard-working Americans to thrive, reversing years of recent economic stagnation under the Obama administration.\r\nTo learn more about Thune\u2019s work on tax reform, please visit the tax reform section on www.thune.senate.gov.\r\nThune\u2019s remarks (as prepared for delivery):\r\n\u201cMr. President, we\u2019re getting close to making tax relief for Americans a reality.\r\n\u201cLast week, the House released its tax reform bill, and this week, we expect the Senate Finance Committee to release our version.\r\n\u201cIn the coming days, the tax committees in both houses will review the bills, and then we\u2019ll debate them on the floor and develop a final version.\r\n\u201cMr. President, after years of economic stagnation, Americans are ready for relief.\r\n\u201cThey\u2019re ready to keep more of their hard-earned money.\r\n\u201cThey\u2019re ready to finally see a real pay increase.\r\n\u201cAnd they\u2019re ready for access to more economic opportunity.\r\n\u201cThat\u2019s what our comprehensive tax reform bill is going to provide.\r\n\u201cTo start with, our bill is going to put more money in Americans\u2019 pockets by lowering their tax rates and doubling the standard deduction.\u00a0\r\n\u201cUnder our bill, a family making $24,000 or less per year won\u2019t be paying any taxes.\r\n\u201cAnd families making more than $24,000 will be paying significantly less than they\u2019re paying today.\r\n\u201cWe\u2019re also going to help families by substantially increasing the child tax credit.\r\n\u201cAnd we\u2019re going to simplify and streamline the tax code so that it\u2019s easier for Americans to figure out what benefits they qualify for \u2013 and so they don\u2019t have to spend a lot of time and money filing their taxes.\r\n\u201cBut that\u2019s only the beginning.\r\n\u201cAmericans don\u2019t just want to keep more of their hard-earned money \u2013 they also want to be making more of it.\r\n\u201cBut Americans have had a hard time doing that lately.\r\n\u201cWages have been stagnant for years, and new opportunities have been hard to find.\r\n\u201cAnd so in addition to reforming the individual side of the tax code, we\u2019re going to reform the business side, so that we can give Americans access to the kind of jobs, wages, and opportunities that will set them up for a secure future.\r\n\u201cIn order for individual Americans to thrive economically, we need American businesses to thrive.\r\n\u201cThriving businesses create jobs.\r\n\u201cThey provide opportunities.\r\n\u201cAnd they increase wages and invest in their workers.\r\n\u201cRight now, though, our tax code is not helping businesses thrive.\r\n\u201cInstead it\u2019s strangling both large and small businesses with high tax rates.\r\n\u201cSmall businesses are incredibly important for new job creation\r\n\u201cBut the high tax rates too many small businesses currently face can make it difficult for them to even survive, much less thrive and expand their operations.\r\n\u201cSo we\u2019re going to lower taxes for small businesses, so that they can grow and hire new workers.\r\n\u201cWe\u2019re also going to allow small businesses to recover their capital invested in things like inventory and machinery more quickly, which will free up capital that they can use to expand and create jobs.\u00a0\r\n\u201cRight now, it can take small businesses years or even decades to recover the cost of their investments in equipment and facilities.\r\n\u201cThat can leave them extremely cash-poor in the meantime.\r\n\u201cAnd needless to say, cash-poor businesses have a hard time expanding, hiring new workers, or increasing wages.\r\n\u201cAllowing small businesses to recover their investments more quickly will mean more jobs and opportunities for American workers.\r\n\u201cIn addition to high tax rates on small and large businesses, another thing that\u2019s decreasing jobs and opportunities for American workers is our outdated worldwide tax system, which is discouraging U.S. companies from investing their profits here at home in American jobs and American workers.\r\n\u201cHaving a worldwide tax system means that American companies pay U.S. taxes on the profit they make here at home, as well as on part of the profit they make abroad, once they bring that money back to the United States.\r\n\u201cThe problem with this is that American companies are already paying taxes to foreign governments on the money they make abroad.\r\n\u201cThen when they bring that money home, they can end up having to pay taxes again on part of those profits, and at the highest tax rate in the industrialized world.\r\n\u201cIt\u2019s no surprise that this discourages businesses from bringing their profits back to the United States to invest in their domestic operations, new jobs, and increased wages.\r\n\u201cBetween 1983 and 2003 \u2013 when the U.S. tax rate was much more competitive with those of other countries \u2013 there were 29 corporate inversions where U.S. companies moved abroad.\r\n\u201cBetween 2003 and 2014 \u2013 when other countries were dropping their corporate tax rates and shifting to territorial tax systems \u2013 there were 47 such inversions.\r\n\u201cOur tax plan addresses this drag on our economy by moving from our outdated worldwide tax system to a territorial tax system.\r\n\u201cBy shifting to a territorial tax system here in the United States \u2013 a move supported by members of both parties \u2013 we will eliminate the double taxation that encourages companies to send their investments and their operations overseas.\r\n\u201cCombine that with a reduction in our high corporate tax rate, and we can provide a strong incentive for U.S. companies to invest their profits at home in American jobs and American workers instead of abroad.\r\n\u201cBusiness tax reform is essential to reversing the economic stagnation of recent years.\r\n\u201cThe White House Council of Economic Advisers estimates that the tax reform framework Republicans have presented will boost economic growth by between 3 and 5 percent.\r\n\u201cThat\u2019s good news for the economy.\r\n\u201cMore specifically, however, it\u2019s good news for American workers, who can expect to see their incomes rise as a result.\r\n\u201cA study from the White House Council of Economic Advisers estimates that reducing the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 20 percent would increase average household income by $4,000 annually.\r\n\u201cAnd Boston University professor and public finance expert Larry Kotlikoff found that lowering the corporate tax rate to 20 percent would increase household income by $3,500 per year on average.\u00a0\r\n\u201cThis was most recently confirmed by Martin Feldstein, a Harvard professor and former chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, who noted in the Wall Street Journal this week that corporate tax reform is likely to boost household income by $3,500 per year.\r\n\u201cMr. President, it\u2019s been a rough few years for the American economy and American workers.\r\n\u201cBut with comprehensive tax reform, the next few years \u2013 and decades \u2013 can look very different.\r\n\u201cRepublicans\u2019 tax reform legislation is going to provide direct relief to hardworking Americans.\r\n\u201cAnd it\u2019s going to create the kind of economy that will give workers access to more jobs, better opportunities, and higher wages for the long term.\r\n\u201cI look forward to working with my colleagues on the Senate Finance Committee, under the leadership of Chairman Hatch, to put the final touches on our bill and take it up in the committee next week.\r\n\u201cIt\u2019s time to give the American people some relief.\u201d", 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.thune.senate.gov//public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=4DF29235-10B4-44CC-8B75-01767ABE68A1"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.7670540362596512, "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"}