[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 114 (Monday, July 21, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4640-S4641]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          BRING JOBS HOME ACT

  Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I come to the floor today to join with 
Senator Walsh from Montana as he is leading us in the effort to pass 
the Bring Jobs Home Act, which is pretty basic in terms of where our 
values and priorities are in terms of our tax policy.
  I know we are in the process of determining whether to bring that up. 
Hopefully we will do that. The American people say it is a no-brainer 
to bring up this bill and pass it. The reason, first of all, would be 
the fact that people understand that we need a middle class. We 
essentially started the middle class 100 years ago. We started it with 
some pretty basic policies in my State in 1914 when Henry Ford decided 
to invest in Detroit and Michigan and America and double the salary of 
his employees so that they could afford to buy his automobiles. He was 
really doubling down on America and on manufacturing in America. We 
have seen multiple ways in which that took off and literally created 
the middle class of our country.
  Today we see the middle class under assault, folks working hard 
trying to hold on. People who felt in the past that if they worked 
really hard they could get into the middle class now feel as if the 
system is rigged against them.
  We are really in a fight as to whether we are going to move forward 
and have a strong middle class. Every other country wants what we have. 
Too many countries have a few very wealthy people and a lot of 
extremely poor people, and they envy the middle-class economic engine 
we have had in this country.
  As we look at how we move forward to keep and expand the middle 
class, we have to look for ways in which we can support our workers and 
our businesses that are investing in America. I believe our workers can 
outcompete anybody as long as the rules are fair.
  There are a lot of ways we need to deal with the rules, but right now 
we have a tax code that really puts a thumb on the scales against our 
workers. At this point in time, after the last 10 years where we have 
actually seen 2.4 million jobs shipped overseas, we still have a tax 
code where American taxpayers are footing the bill for this movement, 
which is stunning. I think every time I have talked to people about the 
fact that when a company packs up and moves, the workers, the

[[Page S4641]]

community, the taxpayers pay for that through write offs in the Tax 
Code, people say: You have got to be kidding. Why did we let that 
happen?
  Well, the Bring Jobs Home Act is a way to address that and to stop it 
from happening. Let me talk about the very specific and very simple 
ways we do that. We would stop the taxpayer subsidies that pay for 
moving costs. We instead would say to companies: If you are coming 
back, you can write off those costs. If you want to move back, you can 
write off those costs, and we will add an additional 20 percent tax 
credit for the cost of moving, so you get an additional tax cut. So if 
you want to come home, we are all for it. You can write off those 
costs. You will get an additional tax cut. But if you want to leave 
this country, you are on your own.
  It is very simple. That is what this does.
  Are there other things we need to do in the Tax Code? You bet. We 
have very serious issues. More and more of our companies are using this 
process called inversion. It seems to me that a good place to start a 
full discussion about how we have a tax code for America, that invests 
in America, that rewards American business and American workers, 
families, communities, is to start with the Bring Jobs Home Act. Surely 
everybody on both sides of the aisle ought to be able to agree that we 
would not pay for the cost of shipping jobs overseas through the Tax 
Code.
  I also wish to commend a lot of companies right now that are actually 
bringing jobs home. It is exciting for me, being from a major 
manufacturing State, to see that we are having a resurgence in 
manufacturing. For a number of reasons--including lower energy costs, 
transportation costs, and a resurgence in manufacturing--we are seeing 
jobs come home. We are seeing manufacturers such as Ford and 
Caterpillar and GE, which have announced major investments in the 
United States, bringing jobs back from Japan and Mexico and China. This 
is good. We want that. There are smaller manufacturers that are taking 
advantage of our skilled and ready workforce. Over 80 percent of the 
companies actually bringing jobs back are companies with less than $200 
million in sales.

  Companies are taking a look and they are coming back. We want to 
reward that. When they look at the Tax Code, we want them to see the 
right message. We want folks to see that, hey, you know what, if you 
are one of the good guys and you are bringing jobs home, we want to 
give you some extra help--to pay for that with an extra tax credit. But 
we also want to send a message to those who are thinking about leaving: 
Our Tax Code will no longer reward your leaving America.
  I do not know how many times I have heard from workers saying they 
not only are insulted by paying for the cost of the move through the 
Tax Code, but oftentimes they are training their replacements from 
other countries. The replacements come over and they train them. I 
mean, this is craziness.
  At a time when too many people have lost their jobs and are looking 
for that fair shot--what is the next job, what is the next opportunity 
for them--how do we make sure the Tax Code, our laws, and our 
investments work for Americans and give everybody a fair shot? That is 
what this is about. It is very much about making sure we have a fair 
shot for every American. Part of that is making sure that we have good-
paying jobs in America and that our Tax Code is rewarding the creation 
of those good jobs and rewarding the companies that are bringing jobs 
home.
  I again thank Senator Walsh for his leadership. He has been very 
clear about how this affects his State of Montana and his concerns 
about this issue. I thank all of those who are cosponsors and working 
with us on this bill. I hope it will be brought up as soon as possible. 
This is really an opportunity for all of us to show the American people 
that we get it, that we are willing to work together on a bipartisan 
basis to do something that is very simple and very straightforward and 
say: As an American we are no longer going to pay for the move, and 
when you move jobs overseas, the Tax Code is not going to pay for that. 
But we will stand together in supporting those efforts that help 
companies bring jobs home.
  I hope when we do have the vote on this issue we will see a 
resounding yes from everyone. I know the American people would love to 
see a strong bipartisan vote right now that would actually address 
something they care about deeply, which is the ability to have a good-
paying job, to work hard, play by the rules, and have a fair shot to 
get ahead, which is what America has been all about. That is who we are 
as opposed to other places--the ability to have the opportunity to work 
hard and get ahead. Everybody needs to know that fair shot is still 
available to them. The Bring Jobs Home Act is part of letting people 
know it is.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. SESSIONS. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum 
call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. King). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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