August 12, 2022 (Washington, D.C.) – Rep. Don Beyer, Chair of Congress’ Joint Economic Committee and a member of the House Committee on Ways and Means, today spoke during debate on the House Floor on the Inflation Reduction Act.
Beyer’s prepared remarks follow below:
Madame Speaker, today we protect our world for future generations.
The Inflation Reduction Act will do so much good for the nation and the American people.
As my colleagues note, the bill will lower health care costs, reduce prescription drug prices, and create jobs.
Much like a proposal I introduced with Senators Elizabeth Warren and Angus King, it will reduce the deficit by preventing tax avoidance for the biggest corporations in this country, requiring them to shoulder their fair share of the tax burden.
But above all I am overjoyed that Congress is finally taking the kind of sweeping, ambitious action we desperately need to prevent the worst effects of the climate crisis.
This is the biggest problem my constituents sent me here to solve.
We are about to pass the biggest and most important climate bill in history.
I’m proud of provisions I wrote or co-wrote, including tax credits to
- speed up the adoption of zero emission mid-size trucks, vans, and other commercial vehicles;
- scale up direct air capture technology to remove carbon pollution directly from the atmosphere;
- promote the development of green hydrogen;
- and incentivize the reduction of emissions in commercial buildings
These provisions and the bill as a whole will create huge numbers of good paying jobs.
But look at the big picture: this bill will put us on a path to meet our targets to reduce emissions, and help save this planet.
This is the kind of work the people’s House exists to accomplish.
Madame Speaker, I thank my colleagues for their support for this historic bill, and I yield back.
