[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 147 (Tuesday, September 9, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Page S6444]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                       One Big Beautiful Bill Act

  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, a new report came out last month detailing 
who benefits from the working-families tax relief that Republicans 
enacted in the One Big Beautiful Bill, and here is what they found: 
Americans in every county in America will see tax relief from this 
bill. Let me say that again. Americans in every county in America will 
see tax relief from this bill.
  I said this was a new report, but it is hardly news for Republicans. 
We knew what we were doing when we crafted this bill. We knew that we 
were enacting tax relief that would benefit people in every corner of 
this country. We knew that it would benefit people of every income 
level and that the greatest proportional benefit would go to working 
Americans. That is what we did in 2017. In 2017, we cut taxes for all 
Americans, and the greatest proportional benefit went to working 
Americans. What we did this year with the One Big Beautiful Bill was 
make that tax relief permanent. Now hard-working American families can 
be confident that they won't see a tax hike next year or in the years 
to come, and they can spend, invest, and save more of their hard-earned 
money with greater confidence for the future.
  This morning, I want to walk through how working families will 
benefit from our legislation.
  The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act lowered tax rates for every income 
level and adjusted tax brackets to provide additional relief, but those 
reforms were going to expire this year without action from Congress. 
What that would have meant is that a typical family earning $80,000 a 
year would have seen their tax rate jump from 12 percent to 15 percent 
next year. Not only that, that family would have lost other benefits, 
like the increased standard deduction and the increased child tax 
credit.
  The standard deduction, which is something that 90 percent of 
taxpayers in this country use to simplify and reduce their taxes, would 
have been cut nearly in half, and the child tax credit would have 
shrunk from $2,000 per child to $1,000 per child. For people in my 
State, that would have meant paying an average of $2,500 more in taxes 
next year--$2,500. Republicans were determined not to let that happen, 
and with our bill in July, we locked in the lower tax rates 
permanently.
  We also made permanent the increased child tax credit and actually 
increased it further to $2,200 per child and then linked it to 
inflation so it won't ever lose its value, and then we made the higher 
standard deduction permanent as well.
  We also added a $6,000 bonus deduction for seniors, and then we 
eliminated taxes on tips--something that will benefit millions of 
Americans who earn part of their income from tips. That includes 
servers, busboys, and bartenders; Uber, Lyft, and taxi drivers; 
hairstylists, tour guides, and a whole host of other Americans. Working 
people who once dreaded big tax bills on their tips every April are now 
breathing a little easier. They are already making plans to save that 
money, put it toward their schooling, or use it for groceries and other 
needs of their families.
  We also eliminated taxes on overtime pay. That means that folks like 
police officers, first responders, and nurses won't have to pay taxes 
on the money they earn when they spend time away from their families 
working extra shifts to keep us safe. It is also a boon to Americans 
who put in overtime working in manufacturing and the trades--hard-
working Americans who spend the workday on their feet and take a shower 
after work, not before.
  All of these reforms make for a Tax Code that works for working 
people. That gives them more breathing room in their budgets and helps 
them build a better future for their families.
  I also want to say a word about what this bill does for Americans who 
work for themselves.
  Family-run businesses--farmers and ranchers, like the people I 
represent in South Dakota--are the backbone of a lot of American 
communities. They are families' livelihoods, job creators, and part of 
Americans' way of life. This bill makes sure our Tax Code helps them 
grow. Small businesses, farms, and ranches will all benefit from the 
permanent lower tax rates in this bill.
  Those that are passthrough businesses will also benefit from the 199A 
small business deduction, which is also now a permanent fixture of the 
Tax Code. These provisions free up cash that will allow family farms 
and ranches and small businesses to invest in their operations and 
their workers.
  Then there are the investment incentives this bill makes permanent: 
bonus depreciation for new equipment, meaning a farmer can deduct the 
full cost of a new tractor or combine the year he or she starts using 
it; a factory owner can deduct the full cost of improving his or her 
assembly line; a construction company can invest in new vehicles and 
technology more easily.
  Immediate expensing for research and development is also now 
permanent--a provision that has had a meaningful impact on getting 
innovative technologies off the ground in South Dakota and around the 
country.
  We also raised the exemption threshold for the death tax, which means 
a lot more family businesses, farms, and ranches are protected from 
this fundamentally flawed tax and the costly estate planning that comes 
with it. It means Americans who have worked their entire lives building 
up their dream won't have to worry about that dream being sold off or 
dismantled to settle a tax bill when they pass it on to the next 
generation.
  With the working families tax reform Republicans enacted this year, 
America's Tax Code is now permanently oriented toward supporting hard-
working Americans, helping the people who work every day to build a 
better future for their children, ensuring that they keep more of their 
hard-earned money, and making America stronger and more prosperous.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.