Evans chairs hearing on retirement security for small business employees, speaks up for tax fairness for working class

Congressman Dwight Evans (PA-03) today chaired a House hearing on retirement security for employees of small businesses, which is vital for those 99.6 percent of Pennsylvania employers to compete for and retain quality workers. Evans also took part in today's hearing on the 2017 tax law and how it left many Americans behind.

Speaking at the House Small Business Committee hearing today, Evans said, "In addition to serving as Vice Chair for this Committee, I serve on the Ways and Means Committee. Last month, we had a hearing on improving retirement security where I had the opportunity to talk about the vitality of this issue with small businesses being able to provide retirement benefits to their employees, and also explore some of the obstacles facing small business employers in providing this benefit.

"In my home state of Pennsylvania, we have nearly 1 million small businesses, employing 2.5 million workers, accounting for 46.7 percent of the workforce for the entire state. Small firms account for 99.6 percent of my state's employers. Needless to say, small businesses are the drivers in our community. In order for these small businesses to remain competitive, and to continue to be the economic and innovative drivers they are, they must be able to offer substantial benefits to their employees."

Evans said options include tax incentives; allowing employers to band together to establish a single retirement plan to achieve many of the economies of scale generally only available to large employers; and making it easier for employees to enroll automatically in a retirement plan.

In the Ways and Means Committee hearing, Evans said the 2017 tax law that Republicans rushed through Congress went in exactly the wrong direction. Philadelphia has a 26 percent poverty rate and Evans wants to see tax laws changed to help people who struggle just to get by.

"In writing the 2017 tax bill, Republicans had an opportunity to improve the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child and Dependent Care Credit – both of which have garnered largely bipartisan support – but left them instead largely unchanged, and even offered less of a child credit to low-income taxpayers than to wealthy ones.

"We are seeing income inequality reach new heights as the wealthy benefit from the bill's tax cuts, and the working poor sink deeper in their struggle to make ends meet. This bill doesn't work for my hardworking constituents in Philadelphia, and doesn't work for the rest of Americans who are forced to make tough decisions to get by," Evans said.

"It's time for us to work towards a solution that doesn't simply put more money in the pockets of our nation's wealthiest while increasing the deficit – we need a legislative vehicle that puts the right tools in our toolbox to bust poverty, improve economic growth, and benefit the hardworking Americans who truly understand the value of a dollar."

A photo of Congressman Evans chairing today's hearing on retirement security is attached or available by contacting ben.turner@mail.house.gov.

Media Contact: Ben Turner, Ben.Turner@mail.house.gov