[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 164 (Wednesday, September 22, 2021)]
[House]
[Page H4870]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVES

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
the Virgin Islands (Ms. Plaskett) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. PLASKETT. Madam Speaker, last week, the Ways and Means Committee 
on which I sit, along with numerous other committees in this House, 
moved forward toward completing our work to achieve President Biden's 
and the American people's vision to build back better.
  The legislation contains economic development initiatives that I have 
long championed to create good-paying jobs, while lowering costs and 
cutting taxes for American families, not American wealthy. This is the 
kind of legislation that makes America great. This is the kind of 
legislation that assures the American people that we have not abandoned 
them in their time of need. To remain the greatest Nation, we must 
support the most vulnerable portion of America.
  Importantly, for my district, this bill contains specific measures 
for the much-needed economic recovery of the U.S. territories, which 
have been severely tried in recent years. It fixes longstanding fiscal 
cliffs related to rebate on Federal excise taxes on distilled spirits 
production in the territories, our rum cover over. The cover over has 
been a part of the fundamental tax relationship between the United 
States and its island territories before there was even an income tax. 
This bill would repeal the cap that has been imposed on the program 
since 1984.
  In addition, we are continuing to expand the federally funded Child 
Tax Credit, including reimbursing the Islands' government who pay out 
the costs for providing the credit. The credit, as expanded in the 
American Rescue Plan, would be continued for additional 4 years.
  This child tax cut has cut child poverty by 50 percent, 50 percent. 
Cutting child poverty by the child tax cut makes economic sense.
  Under the Annie E. Casey Foundation study, America has lost $500 
billion a year in lost production due to children who have lived in 
poverty most of their life because of hunger, leading to loss of jobs, 
school dropouts, prison, all of these things will now have a way for 
these children to come out.
  Furthermore, we are extending the changes made to the Earned Income 
Tax Credit in the American Rescue Plan. We increase the value of the 
Earned Income Tax Credit for workers with no qualifying dependents, and 
we do that on a permanent basis in Build Back Better.

                              {time}  1030

  In addition, we are providing lookback provisions that are necessary 
for individuals. This important part of the earned income tax credit is 
premised on the idea that if a taxpayer's earned income was less in a 
given year than it is in the prior year, the taxpayer may elect to use 
their prior year's earned income in computing the EITC. That is, this 
is a 1-year lookback. This will provide stability to taxpayers who have 
experienced economic shocks in any given year, the same way we do for 
businesses.
  This legislation provides much-needed relief to the U.S. territories 
from the GILTI tax that was supposed to apply to foreign jurisdictions. 
Since 2017, there have been significant concerns about the application 
of the GILTI tax to sovereign territories of the United States, 
including the U.S. Virgin Islands as well as the other territories, 
flowing from the treatment of U.S. territories under the Internal 
Revenue Code.
  I am pleased to see the additional accommodations to smaller-sized 
businesses and the economic activity that will allow jobs and incomes 
to flourish. For these employers, the possessions wage credit would be 
increased from 20 percent to 50 percent of eligible possessions wages 
and allocable fringe benefits for each employee. With these enhanced 
credits, the Ways and Means Committee acted to provide relief to 
service-based economies.
  I am also excited about the proactive support for disaster 
resilience. We are providing tools to mitigate the impact of natural 
disasters by providing incentives for upfront investments.
  We are providing strong incentives to attract capital and promote 
jobs in communities that need it the most, significant resources for 
rural areas, Tribal communities, and underserved minority communities.
  We have affordable housing to help reduce housing inequality and 
pathways to homeownership, which is about wealth creation in this 
country.
  Democrats have heard the needs and desires of the American people, 
all American people--Democrats, Republicans, independents, rural, 
urban, small town, islands even. We are here to help you.

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