St. Louis, Missouri – Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (MO-08), joined by Ways and Means Representative Darin LaHood (IL-16) and Representative Ann Wagner (MO-02), hosted a roundtable discussion at Centene in St. Louis, Missouri, to hear from local business leaders and workers urging Congress to take action to prevent the looming $7 trillion tax hike proposed by the Biden-Harris Administration.

“It is abundantly clear that the tax hikes proposed by the Biden-Harris Administration would be devastating for the workers and job creators of the heartland and communities across this country,” said Chairman Smith. “The Ways and Means Committee has held over 100 Tax Team events in 19 states across the country, and the message is clear. Workers’ wages are still lagging behind inflation and small businesses are struggling to grow. If we want to repair the economic damage of the last four years, Congress must build on the success of the Trump Tax Cuts and deliver pro-growth policies that allow families to thrive, businesses to expand, and workers to earn a living.”

“I joined my Missouri colleague Congressman Jason Smith, Chair of the Ways and Means Committee, for a roundtable in St. Louis with local business leaders. We had an extremely productive conversation about the upcoming expiration of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and how much our local businesses, employees, and economy here in St. Louis will be harmed if taxes are hiked,” said Rep. Wagner. “If the Trump tax cuts expire, the average taxpayer in Missouri’s 2^nd District would have their taxes raised by 20%, a nearly unmanageable cost, especially in the wake of Joe Biden and Kamala’s Harris’ rampant inflation.”

“It was a pleasure to join Ways and Means Chairman Jason Smith in St. Louis to hear from Midwest businesses about the success of the Trump Tax Cuts, bringing business back to United States, incentivizing growth, and strengthening our workforce. The Trump Tax Cuts created the best economy of my lifetime for small businesses and workers of all backgrounds, and we can’t allow that progress to be undone,” said Rep. LaHood. “Under Chairman Smith’s leadership, Ways and Means Republicans have hit the ground running through our Tax Teams to ensure that we strengthen the Trump Tax Cuts, and that House Republicans are prepared for the ‘Super Bowl of Tax’ on day one of 119th Congress. As the Chair of the American Workforce Tax Team, I’ll continue to work with Chairman Smith and our Ways and Means colleagues to advance pro-growth tax policies that allow our communities in Illinois and across the country to thrive.”

Over the past several months, Ways and Means Committee Republicans have been traveling to communities throughout the country to listen to workers and small business owners on how best to extend key provisions of the 2017 Trump Tax Cuts before their expiration next year. The St. Louis roundtable marks the second tax team event Chairman Smith has personally hosted in Missouri to bring attention to the economic challenges facing the Show Me State.

During the event, attendees stressed the need for Congress to extend the Section 199A small business deduction, a provision in the 2017 Trump Tax Cuts that allows small businesses to compete fairly with larger corporations and helps them expand, hire new employees, grow wages, and reinvest in their communities. Participants noted that the Biden-Harris plan to see this provision expire would increase the tax rate paid by small businesses to over 43 percent – nearly 20 percentage points higher than what businesses pay in Communist China.

Roundtable attendees included:

• Centene
• Evernorth Health Services 
• Wideman Pools 
• Speed Fabrication LLC 
• Reinsurance Group of America (RGA)
• Ameren
• Hunter Engineering 
• Bunge
• Sitelines
• Emerson

To learn more about the work of the Ways and Means Committee Tax Teams, click here.