[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 211 (Tuesday, December 7, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S8938]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                         Build Back Better Act

  Mr. President, on Build Back Better, Senate Democrats continue our 
work to pass the President's Build Back Better Act before Christmas. 
Making progress on Build Back Better has been no small task, but 
sticking to our deadline will be worth it for one simple reason: at its 
core, Build Back Better is the best shot we have had in decades to help 
families lower costs, to cut taxes for working and middle-class 
Americans, and create good paying jobs while fighting the climate 
crisis.
  Economists across the ideological spectrum have said it will not--
will not--worsen inflation, something we are seeing happening across 
the world, not just in the U.S.
  Here is something just about every American can appreciate: Build 
Back Better will make it cheaper for parents to raise their kids. For 
that alone, it is more than worth the effort. By providing the largest 
investment in childcare in American history, Build Back Better will 
make it so the vast majority of families will pay no more than 7 
percent of their income on childcare for kids under 6. That single 
investment could save parents hundreds or even thousands of dollars a 
year. I think it is a pretty great deal for American families.
  It will also help our economy. Everywhere you go you hear about 
shortages of labor. One of the main reasons is inadequate childcare. We 
rank way low on the list of developed nations. The United States' 
provisions for childcare come out near the very bottom. That is 
something we cannot tolerate anymore. And that is just one item, 
childcare.
  Build Back Better will also provide, for the first time ever, free 
universal pre-K for millions of American families. By one measure, pre-
K can cost parents up to $8,600 a year per child. Under Build Back 
Better, many parents will pay zero. Think about that: pre-K, for the 
first time in U.S. history, the greatest expansion of free education 
that the United States has seen in a century. When we made high schools 
available to everyone, it made our economy the strongest in the 20th 
century. We have got to learn that lesson here in the 21st century with 
pre-K.
  Build Back Better, of course, will also extend the child tax credit 
that Democrats passed under the American Rescue Plan. This simple 
lifeline--a $300 check in the mail each month for each child--can be a 
game changer--a game changer--during the winter months, and under Build 
Back Better, we can make sure this benefit stays in place.
  None of this approaches the many other ways that Build Back Better 
will save Americans money. It will provide the largest investment in 
affordable housing ever. It could save Americans hundreds--even more--
by making prescription drugs, like insulin, cheaper. And it will take 
necessary and long-overdue steps to fight the climate crisis, which 
costs our country tens of billions each year every time hurricanes, 
wildfires, and floods wreak havoc across the country.
  Creating jobs, lowering costs, fighting climate change, and keeping 
more money in people's pockets--these are the things Americans want. 
These are the things Americans need, and it is what Build Back Better 
does. We are going to continue working to get these things done before 
the Christmas holiday.