Congressman Higgins Says Proposed 2018 Federal Budget is a Vehicle to Take from Hardworking Americans & Give to the Wealthy

Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-26), a member of the House Committee on the Budget, objected to the Fiscal Year 2018 budget resolution introduced by House Republicans this week which slashes Medicare and fails to invest in the growth of the American Economy.

The budget plans for the privatization of Medicare, replacing Medicare's guaranteed benefits for future retirees with fixed payments toward the purchase of a private health plan or traditional Medicare. This is similar to a voucher plan proposed by Congressman Paul Ryan several years ago. Under that plan the CBO estimated people in traditional Medicare would pay Part B premiums 25% higher than current law. In total, the budget cuts Medicare by $487 billion over ten years.

Higgins criticized the Medicare cuts during his opening remarks, "this would voucherize the Medicare Program, which would put the Medicare program back to the pre-Medicare era when private insurance companies didn't want to write policies for older Americans and 56% of older Americans didn't have insurance. Today, because of Medicare, 97% of [older] Americans now have insurance."

(For opening remarks go to: https://youtu.be/NkYkgYuuK8c)

Higgins, author of the Nation Building Here https://higgins.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/higgins-announces-nation-building-here-at-home-act at Home Act, also addressed the lack of infrastructure investments and the lost opportunity to rebuild the country's failing infrastructure and create jobs during opening remarks, "Where is the budget that we were promised for a robust investment in American infrastructure? Infrastructure creates jobs in the construction trades and supplies and materials industry but it also, we recognize, unleashes the resources and the creativity of the private sector. If you really want to grow this economy beyond the anemic 2% which we've experienced over the last 17 years, each year, we need to invest in the growth of the economy."

(To access video of Rep. Higgins introducing the infrastructure amendment click above or go to: https://youtu.be/3PHYk7_J6SE)

Higgins led introduction of an infrastructure investment amendment aimed at replacing tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy with road and bridge projects that spur private sector economic investments in communities and support jobs for hardworking Americans.

In testimony Higgins said, "The 2018 budget proposes to spend less than $92 billion in outlays for American transportation infrastructure. When you compare that to the $118 billion that U.S. taxpayers paid to rebuild the roads and bridges of Afghanistan it pales in comparison. When you consider the $96 billion U.S. taxpayers paid to rebuild the roads and bridges of Iraq, a $92 billion investment in 2018, in rebuilding the infrastructure of America it is a national and international embarrassment. Keep in mind that both Iraq and Afghanistan are nations with a population of approximately 30 million people. America is 325 million people."

The Congressman also introduced an amendment seeking protections for clean air and water:

(To access video of Rep. Higgins' introduction of EPA amendment click above or go to: https://youtu.be/3N6ktP_-a64)

"Decades of hard work by both parties to rid our air of toxic pollutants, remove waste from our rivers and lakes, and provide safe drinking water to our communities is at risk," said Higgins. "In my home community of Buffalo, New York we have seen the EPA's effectiveness first hand. Thirty years ago the Buffalo River was declared biologically dead and ecologically destroyed because of the industrial dumping of toxic waste. Today the River has been remediated and transformed into a recreational waterway with vastly improved water quality. The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, administered by the EPA, the Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper and corporate partner Honeywell has invested more than $70 million to remove toxic waste from the Buffalo River. As a result the Buffalo River and adjacent land is helping to lead an economic and life-quality renaissance at the water's edge in Buffalo."

The proposed budget also assumes the repeal and replace health bill passed by the House is enacted, including the $800 billion cut to Medicaid.

Overall, the budget assumes $5.4 trillion in spending cuts over ten years, including $4.4 trillion in cuts to mandatory programs, which include: Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, SNAP & Unemployment Insurance. The Republican budget ties the ability to move forward with tax reform overhaul to those cuts. The FY 2018 budget assumes 2.6% growth, less than the overly ambitious 3% included in the White House but, but more than the 1.9% recommended by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

All 28 amendments introduced by Higgins and other Democratic members were rejected by the Republican majority and the FY2018 Budget resolution was approved during the Budget hearing by a vote of 22-14. Final government spending bills, with more detailed, line-by-line budgetary allocations for 2018 are scheduled to be considered by Congress before the fiscal year ends on September 20, 2017.

Read this original document at: https://higgins.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/congressman-higgins-says-proposed-2018-federal-budget-is-a-vehicle-to