Congress Should Not Water Down Inflation Reduction Act

The Senate will soon consider the Inflation Reduction Act, a health care, energy, climate, and tax bill that would reduce deficits by roughly $305 billion over the next decade. However, some special interests are pushing for changes to the bill – including removing a provision to close the carried interest loophole, weakening measures to lower prescription drug costs, and adding carve-outs to the corporate minimum tax. Others have discussed adding new spending to the bill.

The following is a statement from Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget:

The Inflation Reduction Act is the largest deficit-reduction bill in over a decade. But it’s only a first step toward fighting surging inflation and tackling our $24 trillion national debt. We can’t let special interests water it down.

Lawmakers should view $300 billion as the minimum amount of acceptable deficit reduction. If they remove any offsets or add new spending, they should pay for these changes with new offsets or cost reduction. There are plenty of ways to lower health care costs and close tax loopholes that everyone should be able to agree to.

Americans are experiencing the highest inflation this country has seen in over four decades. It’s time for their leaders to come together and pass legislation to help the Federal Reserve fight inflation. We can’t let this effort die through death from a thousand cuts.

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For more information, please contact Kim McIntyre, Director of Media Relations, at mcintyre@crfb.org