Rep. Mike Garcia
U.S. Rep. Mike Garcia (R-CA) this week unveiled three separate pieces of legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives: the Inflation Prevention Act, the State and Local Tax (SALT) Fairness Act, and the Prioritizing Troops Over Tax Collectors Act.
“I am once again introducing these critical bills and calling on all my fellow House members to support [them],” Rep. Garcia said in a statement released on Tuesday. “After voting for our Speaker of the House of Representatives, it is time that we get back to business and pass important legislation, like these three bills that will serve our country once again.”
The Inflation Prevention Act, H.R. 252, would create a point of order against spending that would increase inflation unless inflation is less than 4.5 percent, according to the congressional record bill summary. Rep. Garcia sponsored H.R. 252 on Jan. 10 with six original GOP cosponsors, including U.S. Reps. Young Kim (R-CA) and Bill Huizenga (R-MI).
“I introduced this bill as a check on spending coming out of Congress,” said Rep. Garcia from the Capitol steps on Tuesday. “We’ve got to stop spending money like we have over the last three years. This bill handcuffs Congress from spending more money if inflation is above 4.5 percent.”
The lawmaker on Jan. 9 also sponsored the Prioritizing Troops Over Tax Collectors Act, H.R. 161, which would reallocate a portion of the $80 billion appropriated to the Internal Revenue Service under the Inflation Reduction Act to instead fund a pay raise for active duty United States military service members.
Specifically, H.R. 161 would ensure that every service member makes at least $15 an hour, or $31,200 annually, according to a bill summary provided by the congressman’s office.
“It’s hard to believe that our active duty military, when they first sign up, are actually making $22,000 or $23,000 a year,” Rep. Garcia said. “That’s actually less than the average In-N-Out [Burger] employee makes.”
Finally, the bipartisan SALT Fairness Act, H.R. 160, which Rep. Garcia sponsored on Jan. 10 with lead original cosponsor U.S. Rep. Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), would repeal the limit on deduction for state and local taxes created in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, which Rep. Garcia said “was meant to be a middle finger to states” like California, which has a high tax rate.
The congressman said eliminating the $10,000 cap would help put more money back in people’s pockets by allowing them to “take full advantage of those deductions on our federal taxes.”