Press Releases

On Tax Day, Americans Benefit from Major Tax Cuts

April 14, 2010

WASHINGTON - Tomorrow is known as tax day, and this year taxpayers can take advantage of more than 25 different tax cuts worth more than $800 billion passed by this Congress designed to help working families and small businesses.

"We have focused on cutting taxes for ordinary Americans," said Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA). "And it's worked. According to IRS figures, the average tax refund this year is $3,000, which is nearly 9.4% larger than last year's average. The Recovery Act was the largest tax cut in history, and it's making a difference for working families."

A report released this week by the Citizens for Tax Justice shows that since January 2009, 98% of American families have seen their taxes cut. These tax cuts saved working families and individuals an average of $1,158 on their tax returns. Bruce Bartlett, President Reagan's domestic policy advisor, noted that "federal taxes are very considerably lower by every measure since Obama became president."

Congressman Thompson highlighted several tax cuts he thought were making a particularly important impact on our communities:

The Making Work Pay tax credit - Ninety-five percent of working families received the Recovery Act's Making Work Pay tax credit of $400 for an individual or $800 for married couples filing jointly in their 2009 paychecks - and will continue to see these benefits in 2010. In our district, 249,000 families are benefiting from the Making Work Pay tax credit.
Tax credits for college expenses - More than four million additional students will be able to attend college thanks to this tax credit, which provides eligible families and students with up to $2,500 in tax savings.
Tax credits for energy efficient renovations - Taxpayers are eligible for up to $1,500 in tax credits for making energy-efficient improvements to their homes, such as adding insulation and installing energy efficient windows.
Alternative Minimum Tax - 26 million middle-class families are protected from the alternative minimum tax, including 45,000 tax filers in the 1st Congressional District. The tax was originally designed to affect the very wealthy, but has not been adjusted to reflect inflation since it was originally written.

Congress also provided important tax breaks to businesses, including expanded small business expensing, bonus depreciation, small business loss carrybacks, and increased incentives to invest in small businesses. And, the Recovery Act provides over $20 billion in tax credits over ten years to promote renewable energy and energy efficiency incentives, including Congressman Thompson's provisions that make it easier for homeowners and small businesses to access solar technology.

Thompson has been a leading champion in Congress for tax cuts that promote sustainability and conservation of natural resources. These include a deduction for land placed in conservation easements and tax breaks for solar manufacturers.

Congressman Thompson Votes for Historic Health Reform

March 21, 2010

WASHINGTON--- Today Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA) joined 218 of his colleagues and voted to pass historic health care legislation. The bill will benefit small businesses and individuals, is paid for and according to the Congressional Budget Office, will reduce the deficit by $130 billion over 10 years, and $1.3 trillion over 20 years.

“The bill passed today by the House will have many important benefits for folks in our district,” said Congressman Thompson. “It will immediately forbid insurance companies from dropping your coverage if you get sick, and give small businesses that provide coverage to their employees a tax credit of up to 35% of premiums. Adults who are uninsured because of a pre-existing condition will be able to buy affordable coverage. Young people will be able to stay on their parents’ insurance until their 26th birthday. And seniors on Medicare who are forced to pay out of pocket for their medications will get a rebate.”

The bill will have a much broader impact once it’s fully implemented in 2014. In California’s First District alone, it will improve coverage for 395,000 residents who already have health insurance by prohibiting annual and lifetime limits on care, making sure insurance companies can’t drop people from coverage if they get sick, ban coverage denials for pre-existing conditions, and reduce the cost of preventive care. To rein in soaring insurance costs, the reforms also limit the amount insurance companies can spend on administrative expenses, profits, and other overhead.

The bill will also:

Give tax credits up to 163,000 families and 15,700 small businesses to help them afford coverage in the First District.
Extend coverage to 63,500 uninsured residents in our district.
Guarantee that 13,100 residents with pre-existing conditions can obtain coverage.
Protect 800 district families from bankruptcy by capping total health care expenditures.
Allow 69,000 young adults to obtain coverage on their parents’ insurance plans.
Provide millions of dollars in new funding for 74 of our community health centers.
Reduce the cost of uncompensated care for hospitals and other health care providers by $67 million annually in the First District.

The bill will also make significant improvements to seniors’ health care. Seniors will have access to free preventive and wellness care, improved primary and coordinated care, and enhanced nursing home care. The bill also closes the “donut hole,” which forces 10,300 seniors in the district each year to cover the full cost of their medications.

It also increases new training programs to ensure that we have a greater number of primary care doctors, nurses, and public health professionals. The bill also incentivizes doctors to provide primary care in underserved areas, to increase access for rural areas.

The bill is supported by California Medical Association, California Hospital Association and AARP.

New Record for Telephone Town Hall

March 10, 2010

WASHINGTON--- Nearly 12,000 people participated in Monday night’s telephone town hall, Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA) announced today - breaking the previous record. The questions were on a wide variety of topics, ranging from health care to the federal debt to immigration.

“Each time I hold one of these events, we have more and more participants,” said Congressman Thompson. “They are not a replacement for in-person town hall meetings, but they are a great way to hear from folks all across our district. Last night was a good chance for us to talk about important things like health care reform and jobs. It’s important that we had a chance to share our thoughts. I wasn’t able to get to everyone, but I’ll be responding to all of the 131 voicemails that were left at the end of the call.”

Congressman Thompson Votes for Fair Competition in Health Care

February 24, 2010

WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA) voted to help lower health insurance costs by ending health insurers’ exemption from federal antitrust laws. The Health Insurance Industry Fair Competition Act, H.R. 4626, would subject health insurance companies to federal antitrust laws, holding them to the same standards as everyone else.

“We need to bring down the cost of health care and make quality health care accessible to more people. By eliminating this exemption, it will make it more difficult for health insurance companies to avoid competition,” said Congressman Thompson. “And increased competition will benefit consumers. Recent rate hikes in California by Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield underscore the need for health insurance reform. It’s absurd that consumers will face up to 39 percent increases in their rates, and we must do all we can to make sure that there is fair regulation of the health insurance market. This bill is a good step forward in the health reform process.”

Since 1945 health insurance companies have been exempt from all federal antitrust laws. According to a recent study by the American Medical Association, there have been more than 400 mergers among health insurers in the past 14 years. As a result, in 94 percent of the metropolitan areas in the U.S., the health insurance markets are now “highly concentrated,” according to long-established antitrust standards, and lack meaningful competition.

Under the bill, health insurers will no longer be shielded from legal accountability for price fixing, bid-rigging, unfair division of market territories, and other anti-competitive practices. This Act will also allow the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission to investigate any suspicion of collusion and hold the insurance companies accountable.

While this bill removes the antitrust exemption, it does not change any state-based systems of regulation or taxation. This legislation will hold health insurers subject to both federal antitrust law and state regulations, and will force insurance companies into increased competition with one another and move the United States toward a fair and affordable health insurance market. The bill now heads to the Senate for consideration.

Rep. Thompson Votes for Fiscal Responsibility

February 4, 2010

WASHINGTON--- Today Congress passed important legislation that mandates that Congress can’t spend more than it can afford. The Statutory Pay-As-You-Go-Act (H.J. Res. 45) requires Congress to offset all new policies that reduce revenues or expand entitlement spending.

“This is a good first step towards restoring fiscal discipline to Washington. I’ve been working to pass Pay-As-You-Go legislation, also known as PAYGO, since I was elected to Congress and I carried the measure of the floor of the House during the 108th Congress,” said Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA). “The federal government’s budget shouldn’t be any different than a family’s budget: you don’t spend more money than you can afford. And if you do make a big purchase, you have to cut back elsewhere.”

The bill passed today is similar to the bipartisan PAYGO law in place in the 1990s, which helped reverse huge deficits, create budget surpluses, and produce an economic boom. In 2002 these budget rules were allowed to expire, contributing to the dramatic turnaround from a projected 10-year surplus of $5.6 trillion in 2000 to projected deficits of over $11 trillion in 2009.

H.J. Res. 45 makes PAYGO law, so that future Administrations can’t choose whether or not they want to follow pay-as-you-go principles. There are some protections in the rule, so that during an economic crisis Congress and the President can do what is needed to strengthen our economy. The bill now heads to President Obama’s desk for signature.