Congressman Kevin Brady
Members & Witnesses Make the Case for Why We Must Lead Now
Texas Insider Report: WASHINGTON D.C. The verdict at todays Ways and Means Committee hearing was unanimous: when it comes to Americas international tax code the status-quo isnt helping the American people. And until Congress leads on this issue Americans will continue to lose their jobs to our global competitors.
In the first two months of this year alone three major American companies have made the decision to move abroad causing a negative impact that will ripple throughout the economy and shatter local communities.
When
Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) asked what happens when global companies move overseas expert witness
Raymond Wiacek described the devastation cities like Detroit face as a result of foreign mergers and takeovers. Reflecting on the legacy of several American automakers in his hometown Wiacek said:
Michigan was an unbelievable state. It had more recreation and more tool and dye companies and more suppliers than anybody. And those places are all gone … We cant lose another round of companies. Maybe were not going to be big in the auto industry anymore but were big in tech now and were big in pharma now and were big in branded products like Starbucks and we cant lose those companies too. And theyre all under threat.
When
Rep. Diane Black (R-TN) asked how continuing to prevent U.S. companies from competing globally will impact future generations Georgetown Law Professor
Itai Grinberg expressed concern about the impact on American workers:
Over time there will be corporations that migrate offshore or are incorporated offshore to start and more and more of their high skilled opportunities will be staffed abroad as they have headquarters abroad and as the leadership of those companies makes decisions about where they want to have small and medium business suppliers for example. Theyll be in Europe not in the United States. And as a result I really do fear there will be fewer opportunities for younger people in the U.S."
Wiacek added:
We better figure out for our communities and our country whats happening and why were losing. And one of the reasons were losing is that we have a noncompetitive tax system."
Summarizing what he heard from the witnesses
Rep. Peter Roskam (R-IL) remarked:
Nobody is defending the status quo. Theres no voice here on the dais or among the witnesses. Nobody is saying Oh its great. Just leave it alone. … Everybody is communicating a sense of urgency about this."
Moving forward Chairman Brady said:
The first step we can take toward overall pro-growth tax reform is to permanently
lower the tax gates to
allow our U.S. companies to bring their profits back home to invest in our communities in our jobs in our research and development in growth."
Ways and Means Republicans are committed to advancing a simpler fairer flatter tax code that will create jobs increase paychecks and expand opportunities. International tax reform is an important component of our plan for comprehensive pro-growth tax reform.
