Peters Helps Senate Pass Historic Inflation Reduction Act to Lower Costs for Families, Make Historic Investments to Tackle Climate Change and Create Jobs

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) helped the Senate pass the Inflation Reduction Act – legislation that would lower health care and prescription drug costs for families, make landmark investments to tackle climate change, create jobs and incentivize domestic manufacturing, while fighting inflation and reducing the deficit.

“Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act we passed in the Senate, we will lower costs for families including for prescription drugs,” said Senator Peters. “I’m proud that this legislation also makes historic investments to combat climate change, while incentivizing clean energy production, American manufacturing and job creation — and at the same time lowers the deficit.”

The Inflation Reduction Act:

• LOWERS PRESCRIPTION DRUG COSTS: Would allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices and cap out-of-pocket costs to $2,000 annually, which will lower prescription drug costs. It also will reduce the cost of insulin, capping at $35 per month co-pays for seniors on Medicare plans. Peters previously cosponsored legislation that would allow Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices and lower the costs of insulin and save patients’ money.

•  LOWERS HEALTH CARE COSTS: Would reduce Affordable Care Act premiums for millions of Americans for three years, through 2025. Without this provision, millions of Americans could have faced higher health care premiums for quality coverage.

• INVESTS IN CLEAN ENERGY & DOMESTIC MANUFACTURING, COMBATS CLIMATE CHANGE: Would make historic investments in tackling climate change, while lowering energy costs, increasing clean energy production and reducing carbon emissions by roughly 40 percent by 2030. It includes clean energy tax credits for consumers and manufacturing. The consumer tax credits are for electric vehicles and encourage families to make their homes more energy efficient and run on clean energy. The bill would also provide manufacturing incentives including tax credits to encourage the onshoring of supply chains and accelerate domestic manufacturing of solar panels, wind turbines, batteries and critical minerals. Together, these measures would create economic opportunity and create jobs, improve our energy security and accelerate development of clean energy technologies, and help confront the climate crisis. This would also boost our economic competitiveness against other countries, including China. As Chair of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Peters helped secure provisions to repair and maintain DHS facilities to protect workers from toxic substances, such as PFAS, and save taxpayer dollars by improving energy efficiency. He also secured a provision to encourage the use of environmentally friendly building materials in disaster recovery efforts.

• REDUCES DEFICIT & FIGHTS INFLATION: Would fight inflation and bring down the deficit. It would also make the biggest corporations and the ultra-wealthy pay their fair share, while there are no new taxes for families making $400,000 or less and no new taxes on small businesses. The savings in this bill will be accomplished by closing tax loopholes and enforcing the tax code. This includes a measure to impose a one percent tax on corporate stock buybacks.

• PROVIDES THE POSTAL SERVICE WITH SAFE AND EFFICIENT DELIVERY VEHICLES: The future of the auto industry is electric, and this bill makes investments in an EV future that will help drive innovation, jobs and economic opportunity. As Chair of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Peters helped secure major investments for the U.S. Postal Service to purchase electric delivery trucks as they continue to add more Next Generation Delivery Vehicles and other vehicles to their fleet. The funding would also enable the Postal Service to invest in charging infrastructure. Peters has led efforts to ensure the Postal Service acquires more electric vehicles. In part due to his urging, the Postal Service announced that they intend to expand their electric vehicle purchase order to at least fifty percent. Peters convened a committee briefing in April with USPS to discuss efforts to modernize the Postal Service’s aging delivery vehicle fleet – including by acquiring electric vehicles and prioritizing union-made vehicles. Last year, he sent a letter to Postal Service leadership urging them to prioritize the acquisition of electric vehicles to ensure the fleet is sustainable for the Postal Service and for our environment.

• ENSURES EFFECTIVE USE OF TAXPAYER DOLLARS: The legislation includes additional resources, which Peters helped secure as Chair of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, to support the Government Accountability Office’s efforts to conduct oversight of the spending and implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act.

The Inflation Reduction Act – which now heads to the U.S. House of Representatives for consideration – has received broad support from the American people, economists across the spectrum and organizations representing patients, consumers, seniors (including AARP), unions, small businesses, employers, physicians, nurses and disease advocacy groups. A group of 126 leading economists – including several from Michigan – wrote, “this historic legislation makes crucial investments in energy, health care and in shoring up the nation’s tax system. These investments will fight inflation and lower costs for American families while setting the stage for strong, stable, and broadly-shared long-term economic growth.” Moody’s Analytics said, “…the Inflation Reduction Act will lean against inflation over the next decade. It also adds a bit to growth… and it is more than paid for with tax hikes on large corporations and the well-to-do.”

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