On the recordDecember 19, 2013
Mr. President, I am here to join my colleagues in asking for unanimous consent--which we will do formally later on--to pass the Tax Extenders Act of 2013. The bill will do a number of important extensions, including-- particularly important for my State--extending the health care tax credit or the HCTC. It is important that we extend it for workers and retirees who lose their jobs and benefits due to no fault of their own. Extending the HCTC preserves a program that people in my home State of Ohio--such as Delphi salaried retirees, who worked hard and played by the rules--know, understand, and trust. These tax credits are set to expire in just 2 weeks, at the end of the year. While affordable health insurance will be available on the health exchanges, one of the most important aspects of the Affordable Care Act--ObamaCare--extending the HCTC ensures that retirees who have already faced a number of transitions can keep insurance that is familiar to them while they learn about new options. Extending the tax credit for 1 year is fiscally responsible. We could and should do more. We should improve the HCTC and make it permanent, as I proposed in legislation I introduced along with Senators Rockefeller, Stabenow, Hirono, and Donnelly. But in the meantime, we could and should at the very least maintain this critical tax credit for a population that needs it desperately. That is what this bill does. That is why the Senate should move it soon by unanimous consent.…
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