Transcripts For CSPAN2 House Ways Means Hearing On Paid Fam

And our nation as a whole. Next Congressional Panel looks at developing a National Paid Program House ways and Means Committee vote on how to pay with advocating a payroll tax on employers and employees. Congressman shares a committee. The committee will come to order. Good morning and welcome to our witnesses some who have traveled considerable distances to be here. Before we move toward scheduled Committee Business i want to take a moment to acknowledge the recent tragic passing of pamela, a valued member of staff with the joint committee for over 40 years. A reminder again of the considerable talent that exist sometimes outside of publicity. Pamela began her career as a joint committee on taxation in may of 1991 and applied her skill in many legislative issues with large and small. Her colleagues on the joint committee almost tireless and dedication to the joint committee and she accepted projects that were analytically difficult and often that of efficient. She was working on a legislative issue just five days before she succumb to longterm health issue on april 7. Choose a leader in the development of the Macro Economic models into the joint committee in 1997 on modeling the consequences of tax policy which represents her first attempt to bring serious and thorough Macro Economic modeling to bear under changes in tax policy. She is leader of the drink committee Macroeconomic Team for 20 years and oversaw the publications of congresses first macroeconomic report of the legislation. She worked on a long list of legislation, notably the 2017 macroeconomic reports on the legislation that became public law, 111597 and a key economist in the collaborative efforts with the Congressional Budget Office to estimate the effect of the Affordable Care act. She served as a drink committee and lead a commonest offer by congress for the taxation of bows and arrows fishing tackle and firearms and ammunition reminder of the policies that come before the committee. Members know we have to rely on the Economic Analysis of the joint Committee Staff to do import work with this committee over many years, they were a very important source of much of economic information. Most important, she was a wife, mother, friend, and very dedicated servant and we sent our deepest condolences true family and friends remain grateful to her contributions. With that i want to recognize Ranking Member brady who also will make a few remarks. Thank you chairman. Congress only works because of dedicated Public Service work behind the scene. These intelligent individuals never sees the spotlight, never ask for praise and nor do they see credit for helping congress to pass laws positively impacting millions of families. More than a quarter of a century pam was one of those many Public Servants who help the committee in countless ways. One of the joint committee on taxation senior economist she was a leader as a term into a Macro Economics, her expertise was invaluable in helping staff, members in helping me navigate tax policy and how safe to our economy especially as it relates to healthcare. Committee members and staff all attest that she was smart as a whip, a straight shooter and above all dedicated to studying the complex taxation systems that make our economy and our government function. On behalf of republicans on our committee i joined chairman neil and offer our condolences to pams family and all the staff during this time. The committee forever holds a gratitude for her service and she will be greatly missed. Thank you very much. We are here today to discuss what it means for working americans across the country that the United States is the only industrialized nation that does not critique any access paid family and medical leave. No one should be forced to choose between caring for a loved one or dealing with a serious medical condition paying bills. They face destroys all differently. Nearly all workers will need to take time away from work at some point to deal with serious personal health issues, care for a Family Member or to welcome a new trial. For middleclass workers especially those on the lower end of the pay scale taken unpaid leave makes it impossible to leave. The struggles without income or short present time then cut into these opportunities and we simply see families that cannot afford undertake any leave from the responsible use. Fewer than half of the American Workers currently have access and only 17 received paid to their employers. Despite claims we know the tax bill was enacted in it did not change that. The vast majority of those benefits still go to people at the top including wealthy shareholders as evidenced by record 806 billion in stock buybacks paid out in 2018. To the extent that workers are seen the benefits or wages, this is a result in some measure of a tight labor market and does not benefit all equally as a result of estate stepping up because the federal government has failed to act. It does not mean this term to workers and their families and makes it difficult for employers to recruit and retain workers. A Small Business owner would like to provide paid leave but cannot without the backstop and the lack of access by 14 talented hardworking people take a step back in the crease and drop out entirely. This is a problem that is ongoing to grow, the most common reason they take leave today is to deal with their own serious medical conditions while remaining attached to the labor force. Population is aging and health and Human Services estimates about half of americans will develop a disability serious enough to require care. This means the number of American Workers of the personal medical leave and the number of American Workers carrying for other members is only going to increase. It is the more than 25 years since a family medical leave act was enacted. The family medical leave act was an important first step in providing most workers with access to unpaid leave. I voted for that major three times. Twice vetoed and once subsequent lease signed in law. Since in a mercantile taken over 200 million times improving them wrong. Nearly 10 reported problems requiring the law and help them by reducing turnover in improving morale. Several of our states have successfully built on the progress made by family medical leave and implemented comprehensive paid leave laws. 2021 my state of massachusetts will become the sick state to implement a paid leave law and earn comprehensive paid leave benefits when they need them. The results of the state efforts speak for themselves. Researchers found access to paid leave increases wages for women and children. Increases Labor Force Attachment participation and reduces use of public assistance, reduces infant mortality and nursing home initiatives. Majority of states would support the state paid leave laws and providing those laws as help their businesses or add effect. This is limited to a number of states that we acknowledges 20 that the federal action is necessary. American workers have been outspoken about the importance of paid leave for all workers. We are here today because weve heard from them and its bin laden clear and without the tobacconist the Ranking Member mr. Brady for an opening statement. Thank you chairman for this meeting i want to help workers and businesses succeed. Republicans have a party of life we understand babies and loving parents and all Resources Available as they raised their family from conception to the breathing room to growing years to 18 years. Republican support expanding access to paid medical and hope to work the democrats and President Trump to find the right way to help families balance work and family. We believe access to family leave produces preventable death of new moms and babies, helps with family bonding, increases employee morale and increases productivity. They have taken important steps to help our local businesses on the paid Family Leave Programs. As part of the tax cuts and drawbacks, republicans create the First Ever National tax unpaid family medical leave. We know every family is different. Millions of families welcome a child each year there are other families who do the important work of taking care of an aging relative. Under Republican Leadership last congress we passed the family caregivers act, new law that directs apart from health and Human Services to create a National Strategy for their support for family caregivers to keep their loved ones at home rather than a nursing home. We passed the laws of the va should act our heroes who served our countrys to be taken care of by the families within the va system. Republicans are proud to champion these vital initiatives to send in the motion the engine that is making paid leave a reality for my familys today. Every dollar counts for families. Tax cuts and drawbacks we doubled the tax credit to the largest amount in history. Increases in expanded it so 8 billion more families workingclass households can access this important credit and puts expenses of raising kids. We no good jobs with growing wages are rejecting the slow growth of the path the republicans are creating growing 50 faster than the obama projection. Low federal employment and nearly half a century. The fastest current projects in more than a decade progressive being good further among bluecollar and low income workers. Because America Today is a million more job openings in the competition amongst businesses, this is encouraged more businesses to provide and expand benefits to workers, like paid family medical leave. That is good news. All of u. S. Workers have access to paid maternity medical leave and renu Resource Management businesses offering this have tripled just in the past four years and thats without a federal mandate. As you work to expand paid medical leave their row concerns that a new one side fits all washington mandate will limit family flexibly. It can be extremely costly, higher taxes on workers, reduce job benefits, or education Social Security medicare to pay for this costly new mandate. The true cost of a family meeting mandate is up to 1 trillion in the first decade according to the american act reform. It needs to go higher. This can force an average worker making 50000 a year to pay more than 58000 and higher payroll taxes and lower wages over the work career whether they ever use the program or not. Families in the 21st century want flexible to, not a smaller paycheck for life. 50000 is a lot of money. That is one full year of retirement, 50000 would be better spent by families on what they need like tapirs for child care or education. Lets join google businesses the flexibly to plan their best for their workers instead of taking money away from hard working moms or dads. Republicans we are making permanent medical leave tax credit which expires at the end of this year in support taken away valuable tax incentive if were serious about paisley. Lets make it easier for Small Businesses that have joined together making affordable paid families to their workers. Lets continue to empower job creators so they can tailor paisley plans to fit th workers needs, families and businesses our work under different when they do not interfere. Today the question isnt whether to expand paid family leave the how best to achieve it. We look forward. Thank you mr. Brady. We have a distinguished panel of witnesses to discuss this important issue of the axis of paid family medically and how can help workers in a place in our economy. Just before introduce witnesses i want to acknowledge the untimely passing of healthcare reporter robert. He spent many years sitting in this very room with many of us covering the work of our committee and he had an unrivaled knowledge of Healthcare System and he will be deeply missed, we sent our deepest condolences to his family and colleagues of the New York Times proved with that let me introduce our witnesses, i want to welcome marissa from my home state of massachusetts, she is raising two high Needs Children in dealing with her parents illnesses. Mr. Anthony, he is a Business Owner from new jersey who can help us learn about the transition to state paid the program as the one that they have a new jersey and the effects had on his business and employees. Misprint data comes to us from the center from law and social policy where she works on issue under quality and Economic Security she will help us understand research unpaid Family Medical Leave Programs. Let me welcome susan levine from her home state and her colleag colleague, she is the state commissioner of Washington State Employment Security department. Whose state has paid family medically programs that would become in 2020. And finally, ms. Rachel is a Research Fellow focusing on economics, the budget of the Heritage Foundation for economic freedom. Each of your statements will be made as part of the record and its entirety. I would ask you to summarize your testimony at five minutes or less and to help with that there is a timing on your table. You have one minute left the light will switch from green to yellow and finally to read when the five minutes are up. The can you please begin. Good morning chairman neil, Ranking Member brady and the members of the committee. I Marissa Howard karp i live in massachusetts and im a proud member of moms raising. I am a wife, mother, only child and a member of the generation carrying for children and supporting may do. I want to tell you about why you believe so strongly that the national lee policy should address the full range of caregiving needs and not only the needs of new parents. Thank you for the opportunity to share my story today. Im a nonprofit professional currently working in pediatric healthcare, my wife is in graduate school and works parttime and we have two incredible kids. A little more than five years ago i was buying backtoschool close with my 7 00 oclock and my febrile daughter when my mom called from georgia. My dad had suffered a major stroke in intensive care. I was in a fight within a few hours and i spent the next month shuffling back and forth to help my parents navigate this crisis in the huge changes in their lives they came from my dad for his disability to walk and to speak clearly. Around the time my dad got out of rehab i got another awful phone call. It was 2 00 a. M. And is traveling to work in chicago. My mother was at the er in a scan showed chad malignant brain tumor. I was on a plane to atlanta within a few hours. Over the next few months i flew back and forth 16 times as my mother underwent surgery and chemo patient therapy. When my father had another major stroke the month after my moms diagnosis. Though their lives are not the same both of my parents survived and im so grateful. That year was awful. We were terrified about their health and we faced financial uncertainty because none of us had access to paid leave my parents were self employed and they lost income while they were hospitalized and recently started a new job and i was worried that taking any leave would jeopardize my job security. Without my job i had an idea how we wouldve stayed afloat. My wife was teaching at the time but we needed both of her incomes to cover daytoday expenses. Both of my kids have intense needs and i carry the insurance for my family because the insurance available through my wifes employer would have cost more and covered less. We had so much going for us, College Degrees and salary jobs, and my parents had been saving for retirement for many years. Still the medical crisis almost created a financial crisis for them and for us because none of us had access to paid family and medical leave. My employer conducted then kindly supportive and able to keep my job they were flexible about when i put in hours and do a lot of remote work so even with the support and juggling was not easy without paisley. I worked on planes and in hospital rooms, and 19 and on weekends, my productivity suffered because i was exhausted and distracted. I was cut her off the people who cannot work remotely with that kind of looks bleeping my hope, nobody should have to rely on luck or flexibly or the goodwill of a boss to stay afloat when they have a family emergency. If we had a National Paid family and medical leave policy it wouldve made a huge differen de for my family and employer. Access to paid leave wouldve been guaranteed and i would not have worried about losing income while also worried about losing my parents. I would not have had to rely on having a flexible job or juggling work while trying to manage my parents and childrens needs. I couldve taken paid leave a week or two at a time. My employer wouldve benefited from a subsidized Insurance Program and myself and put parent couldve recouped some income during a financially difficult time. As this committee is discussing a National Paid leave pol