CONGRESSMAN BISHOP OPPOSES BUDGET THAT INCREASES DEFICITS, DECIMATES HEALTHCARE, TAKES FOOD FROM CHILDREN, ABANDONS SMALL BUSINESSES
WASHINGTON – Yesterday, Congressman Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (GA-02), a senior member of the House Appropriations Committee, voted against a proposed budget bill, H.Con.Res. 14, that would increase the deficit by $4.5 trillion dollars to pay for tax cuts for billionaires and pay for them with drastic cuts to programs on which America’s elderly, veterans, families, and children rely.
The bill was passed by a vote of 217-215 and now will be considered in conference by the U.S. House and Senate.
“This bill increases the U.S. deficit and drastically cuts healthcare to Georgians under the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid and cuts nutrition provided through SNAP and the food lunch program so that billionaires can get huge tax cuts, leaving the American taxpayer with table scraps and fewer resources and services,” said Congressman Bishop. “This bill threatens Georgians’ quality of life. It would take away healthcare for our seniors and families in need. It would take food out of the mouths of our children. And it would walk away from our cities and small businesses who rely on partnerships and investments by Congress to improve infrastructure, increase efficiency, and reduce costs.”
For example, the proposed budget would make healthcare more expensive for nearly 94,000 Georgians in the 2nd Congressional District who would see their average premium increase by $430 per year. It would also put at risk over 195,000 people on Medicaid in the 2nd Congressional District, which includes over 130,000 children under the age of 19 and nearly 30,000 seniors over the age of 65. The cuts will also hurt healthcare providers, nursing homes, long term care providers, hospitals, and community health care centers which will have a higher risk of closing. That will further strain the Middle and Southwest Georgia economy while at the same time reduce access to affordable healthcare close to home, especially in rural and other underserved areas.
There are 211,000 children, seniors, veterans, and working parents in Georgia’s 2nd Congressional District who count on SNAP to help put food on the table. They would also lose this support under the budget bill.
The budget bill would also eliminate energy efficiency and innovation programs that have invested hundreds of millions of dollars in small and large businesses in this region. That investment has spurred the creation of manufacturing jobs and facilities from Bainbridge to Fort Valley, from Mitchell to Decatur Counties, and from Lee and Sumter Counties to Macon and Bibb Counties. This included solar projects and supporting electric vehicle industry growth which has widespread support from Georgia Democrats and Republicans, including Governor Kemp.
The budget bill would also take at least $330 billion from things like school lunches, Pell Grants, Head Start, and other programs children use to have a strong start to live and prepare themselves to succeed in life. It would gut the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that helps protect American consumers from bad actors in the banking and financial industry.
All of this to finance $4.5 trillion in tax cuts for the wealthy. If the 2017 tax cuts are extended that would give an average annual tax cut of $32,118 to a family earning about $750,000 and $314,000 to a family earning more than $3.5 million per year. Nearly half the net benefit of the proposed tax cuts would go to the top 5 percent of households, or those making more than $450,000 a year. Meanwhile working families will only get a few hundred dollars in tax cuts a year.
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