This afternoon, the House passed the American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act (HR 4213) to create jobs, including summer jobs, close loopholes that give corporations a tax break to send American jobs overseas, and help Americans who lost their jobs through no fault of their own. While Republicans are sitting back trying wait out the recession they created, Democrats know we need to work our way out. That's why we are creating good jobs as part of a strong new foundation for the American economy–and keeping American jobs here in America with innovators and small business entrepreneurs leading the way. This bill supports more than 1 million American jobs by:

restoring credit to small businesses

extending the R&D tax credit so American innovation can lead the world

rebuilding American infrastructure

expanding summer jobs for young people

providing tax relief for middle class American families

Speaker Pelosi in strong support of the legislation:

To fully fund this job creation, the bill closes tax loopholes and requires corporate accountability:

Preventing corporations from shipping jobs overseas and sticking American taxpayers with the bill

Making Wall Street fund manager billionaires pay their fair share of taxes

Making the oil industry pay to ensure there are sufficient funds to clean up a spill

Congressional Republicans voted against shutting loopholes that subsidize companies moving American jobs overseas. While the foreign tax credit was originally designed to prevent “double taxation” of income earned abroad (full taxation by both a foreign country and by the United States), companies have devised schemes essentially shifting the burden of their foreign income tax onto American taxpayers. These transactions enable companies to operate offshore with essentially little or no tax liability to either the U.S. or the foreign government–also encouraging them to ship jobs overseas. This bill not only goes after the taxes these companies are avoiding paying–it ensures they don't get the tax break at all for income that's not subject to U.S. tax–removing incentive to move jobs and assets overseas. In 2004, U.S. multinational corporations paid an effective U.S. tax rate of just 2% on their $700 billion of foreign active earnings. Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) explains:

The bill also addresses the emergency needs and crises left by the Bush Administration–ensuring seniors can keep their own doctors (SGR) and extending a proven economy booster, unemployment relief for families. Chairman Henry Waxman:

Chairman George Miller:

Rep. Danny Davis:

The bill also creates jobs and reinvests in America with Build America Bonds and Recovery Zone Bonds to make it less expensive for State and local governments to finance the rebuilding of schools, sewers, hospitals and transit projects; extends Build America Bonds, which have been called “one of the economic recovery efforts biggest successes,” through 2012; and extends Recovery Zone bonds for economically distressed areas through 2011, which will help local municipalities raise more than $25 billion of capital for infrastructure and economic development projects and will support more than 450,000 jobs nationwide. Chairman Oberstar:

Rep. Blumenauer:

During debate of the bill, many Republicans claimed President Obama and Democrats in Congress have failed to create jobs. While more must be done to create and save jobs, the truth is we continue to see growing signs of economic recovery–no thanks to House Republicans who voted against the Recovery Act and threaten to take us back to the failed policies that created the economic crisis. The latest signs of recovery include:

Nearly 300,000 American jobs were created in April–the largest gain in four years and a sharp turnaround from the nearly 800,000 jobs lost a month under President Bush

GDP is up 3 percent in the 1st quarter of 2010–a year ago the economy shrank 6.4 percent

Manufacturing is up for the ninth month in a row, reaching a six-year high

Consumer confidence is up for the third straight month, to the highest level in more than two years.

Rep. Richard Neal addresses the Republican rhetoric:

Rep. Rob Andrews recommends that a “math book” or a “history book” should be referenced:

While Rep. Sessions (R-TX) claimed new jobs have all been “government jobs”, his home state of Texas gained 32,500 jobs last month, and only 1,700 of those were “government jobs.” That follows similar national numbers–April marked the fourth month of job growth with 573,000 American jobs added since December, 84% in the private sector.

Democrats in Congress will continue to address the major issues confronting our nation and take America in a New Direction–creating good American jobs, the lowest taxes in 60 years for the middle class and small businesses, closing tax loopholes that send jobs overseas, and building a strong new foundation for the American economy.

Learn more about the American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act»