WASHINGTON, D.C. – House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (MO-08) released the following statement after the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for October 2024, showing year-over-year inflation of 2.6 percent was higher than last month: 

“Americans are being robbed by 20 percent inflation. Paychecks don’t pay the bills, and families are emptying bank accounts and maxing out credit cards to make ends meet. If Democrats get their way, taxes will increase on every single American – further fueling today’s cost-of-living crisis. The average family of four will have to pay higher taxes equivalent to nine weeks of groceries. Parents will see the Child Tax Credit slashed in half, while American small business owners will pay a tax rate 20 percentage points higher than those in Communist China.

“The American people gave Congress a mandate to provide relief from the Democrats’ cost-of-living crisis. Ways and Means Republicans are ready to partner with President Trump to build an economy that helps working people and build on the success of his 2017 tax cuts. Ways and Means Tax Teams have spent this year preparing for the 2025 Super Bowl of Tax and held over 120 listening sessions in 20 different states. Americans are telling us they are ready to return to the booming Trump economy that boosted real wages and brought new investment to every corner of the country. We will pursue relief for working families desperate to turn the page on four years of failure.”

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Key Background:

• Everything Costs More: Prices have increased 20.7 percent since the beginning of the Biden-Harris Administration. 
• Americans Making Less: Real wages and benefits have fallen 3.1 percent since the beginning of the Biden-Harris Administration.
• Inflation Above Fed’s Target: For 43 straight months, inflation has been above the Federal Reserve’s 2 percent target.
• Inflation Higher Than Wages: Inflation outpaced wages for 26 straight months under the Biden-Harris Administration. 
• Historic Interest Rates: Under the Biden-Harris Administration, interest rates hit their highest levels in 23 years.
• Mortgage Costs 96 Percent Higher: The monthly mortgage payment for a median priced new home has increased $1,087 and is 96 percent higher than when President Biden and Vice President Harris took office in January 2021.
• $1 Trillion+ Credit Card Debt: Credit card interest rates are at their highest levels in more than three decades, while consumer credit debt has exceeded $1 trillion for five calendar quarters. The number of Americans struggling to pay credit card bills has increased to the highest level since March 2012. Nearly 11 percent of credit card balances are more than 90 days past due.
• Shrinking Savings: Thanks to higher prices, families have spent the entirety of their pandemic savings by 2024, and they are able to save less of their income. The average personal savings rate since President Biden and Vice President Harris took office is 2.6 percent lower than the pre-Biden-Harris average and it remains comparatively low at 4.8 percent today.
• Families Falling Behind on Bills: Over one-third of families (37 percent) paid a late fee in the past year.