Ways & Means Committee considers renewal of AGOA and HOPE/HELP for Haiti, Medicare coverage expansion, fraud prevention measures, trade enforcement, Social Security improvements, common sense tax reforms, and expanding taxpayer rights and privacy.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (MO-08) delivered the following remarks at a Committee markup of H.R. 6500, H.R. 6504, H.R. 4930, H.R. 227, H.R. 2716, H.R. 4993, H.R. 6506, H.R. 6495, H.R 4242.
As prepared for delivery.
“Today’s markup continues the Ways and Means Committee’s work to deliver targeted solutions for real problems faced by real Americans: taxpayer privacy, access to health care, combatting fraud, and better trade enforcement, just to name a few. These policies have won bipartisan support, and they continue this Committee’s practice of working across the aisle to get things done.
“Our first two bills continue long-standing, bipartisan trade programs that advance America’s strategic and economic interests: the African Growth and Opportunity Act, known as AGOA, and the HOPE/HELP program for Haiti.
“In Africa, China and Russia have been aggressive players, economically bullying developing nations, extracting and controlling that continent’s critical minerals in dirty and dangerous ways, all in a bid to assert global dominance. AGOA is a key part of how America protects our interest in a region important to our future. Not only does the program strengthen relationships with key economic partners, it also opens the door to more customers for American farmers and producers in some of the world’s fastest-growing economies. As China continues to grow its presence around the globe, America must provide an alternative path to nation’s looking to tie their economic prosperity to the United States and not our adversaries.
“HOPE/HELP advances U.S. strategic and economic interests right in our backyard in the Western Hemisphere. A fair and mutually beneficial trading relationship with Haiti, specifically focused on its textile and apparel industry, provides jobs and stability in a nation with a history of humanitarian crises. A prosperous Haiti helps improve the security of America at home.
“Both Republicans and Democrats have long supported both trade programs. Today’s bills to extend both builds on the previous work this Committee did to create the programs in the first place.
“The committee will also consider legislation from Representatives Blake Moore and Schneider to crack down on the theft of America’s intellectual property. Valuable American IP has been the target of theft by foreign competitors for decades. This bill frees Customs and Border Protection to closely coordinate with the private sector when it suspects that imported merchandise violates U.S. intellectual property laws.
“The next pair of bills help Social Security beneficiaries. The Clergy Act, introduced by Representatives Fong and Thompson, creates a temporary window for members of the clergy who have voluntarily opted out of the Social Security system to opt back into it. Congress did this in the late 1990s, and this bill provides the same opportunity to this generation of spiritual leaders.
“Our next bill continues a proven policy that has already enabled the federal government to identify, prevent, and recover hundreds of millions of dollars of improper payments made to deceased people. Congressman Higgin’s bill permanently extends the authority for the Social Security Administration to share its death data with Treasury’s Do Not Pay portal so federal payments aren’t made to deceased individuals. This exact same policy has already passed the U.S. Senate with unanimous bipartisan support and its important this Committee also take action.
“Next, we will turn to health care legislation introduced by Representative Fitzpatrick that expands at-home health options for seniors. Currently, Medicare does not cover certain drugs administered at-home that are infused through a pump. Without treatment, patients may experience life-threatening organ damage. This bill gives Medicare coverage to these drugs so seniors can receive treatment from the comfort of their homes.
“Our next two bills continue our campaign to strengthen taxpayer rights. The first, legislation from Representatives Moran and Sewell, strengthens rights for taxpayers engaged in certain litigation in Tax Court in light of a recent Supreme Court ruling. The bill suspends the period of limitations for filing a claim for credit or refund during certain Tax Court proceedings and prohibits the IRS from applying refunds against a disputed tax liability while a hearing is underway.
“The second forces the IRS to be more transparent when asking third parties for confidential information about a taxpayer. Under current law, the IRS must notify taxpayers before contacting third parties, like banks or employers, during a tax investigation, but the agency is not required to tell taxpayers exactly what information it is seeking. This bill from Representatives Steube and Panetta requires the IRS to both disclose to taxpayers the exact information they are seeking from third parties and eliminates the need for many third-party contacts, by giving taxpayers the opportunity first to provide the information to the IRS themselves.
“The last bill from Representative Schweikert helps keep our communities safe. Currently, less-than-lethal weapons like tasers are taxed as firearms under outdated laws. Because of the incorrect classification, the tax raises the cost to use non-lethal tactics and discourages innovation for new safety devices. This bill corrects this error and ensures future taser-related innovations are not subject to the Firearms and Ammunition Excise Tax.
“Thank you to all members for your hard work on bringing these bipartisan bills before us today, and I look forward to taking the next step toward making them the law of the land.”