Dear Democratic Colleague
On Monday, we have an historic opportunity to build a stronger, fairer future for the children.
As you know, our Build Back Better Plan will deliver transformative, life-changing benefits for working families across the nation: creating jobs, cutting taxes for families and small businesses, and lowering health care costs. This package includes child care, home health care, paid family and medical leave, free universal pre-K, the Biden Child Tax Credit, workforce development, expanding Medicare benefits, addressing the climate crisis and more. All of these initiatives enjoy a broad and bipartisan level of public support throughout the country.
With regard to the $3.5 trillion topline number for this package, the President has been clear: this is the number that will honor his vision to Build Back Better.
To that end:
- First, this is the number that has been agreed to in the Senate and is now before us in the House. Accordingly, we will write a reconciliation bill with the Senate that is consistent with that topline.
- Second, we will craft a bill that is paid for, including by increasing taxes on the wealthiest Americans and largest corporations, some of whom currently pay little to no federal income taxes. The House is exploring ways to advance tax fairness and enforcement in this bill that are widely popular, including 72 percent support for crackdowns on tax evasion by corporations and the wealthy.
- Third, as we proceed with this legislation, we will work closely with the Senate to assemble a bill that will pass both chambers, consistent with the 51-vote privilege of reconciliation and respectful of the Byrd Rule. To do so, we must first pass the budget resolution.
The House is hard at work to enact both the Build Back Better Plan and the bipartisan infrastructure bill before October 1st when the BIF would go into effect. Further, the uncertainty of the delta variant insists that we move expeditiously.
Any delay to passing the budget resolution threatens the timetable for delivering the historic progress and the transformative vision that Democrats share.
In support of President Biden’s vision to Build Back Better, we must move quickly to pass the budget resolution this week. It is essential that our Caucus proceeds unified in our determination to deliver once-in-a-century progress for the children.
Thank you for your continued leadership for The People.
