On the recordDecember 2, 2011
Mr. Speaker, I am asking the House to pass the expansion of the payroll tax cuts, which will put more money in the pockets of Americans and will boost economic growth and job creation. American workers have received bigger paychecks in 2011 because of the payroll tax cut, helping families to pay their grocery bills, to pay their rents and mortgages, and helping to support local businesses. Allowing the payroll tax cuts to expire at the end of this month will result in less money in the pockets of hardworking middle class families at a time when our economy and our families can least afford it. With global financial uncertainty threatening our domestic recovery, this is not the time to take money out of the pockets of working families. A family earning $50,000 a year will receive a tax cut of about $1,000 if the 2 percent payroll tax cut is extended. For Rhode Island, this would add $400 million to the paychecks of roughly 600,000 workers. Expanding the payroll tax cut to 3.1 percent, as the President has proposed, could increase the flow of capital into our local economy in Rhode Island to approximately $700 million. It's time for Congress to stand up for working American families by extending and expanding the payroll tax cut now. ____________________





