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This last month I authored two bills, one that removes the marriage penalty in Obamacare and the other to protect Americans privacy and identity at the IRS and Social Security Administration.
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H.R. 2306
“Obamacare Marriage Penalty Elimination Act”
Read the bill here
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Currently, President Obama’s health care law provides premium subsidies, through tax credits, to low and middle income families to pay for health care coverage. This law calculates those subsidies based on a household’s income compared to the federal poverty level. Any individual or family signed up for Obamacare coverage can claim the credit if their combined income is less than 400 percent of the federal poverty level (or roughly $62,000).
If a couple is married and both spouses work, both of their incomes count against the federal poverty level calculation, usually reducing a couple’s premium subsidy. If that same couple would get divorced however, their subsides would be calculated individually, thus increasing their subsidy level.
Obamacare has been a disaster from the beginning, and this marriage penalty punishes low-income married couples and sends the wrong message to American families. Creating incentives for people to divorce or remain single is fundamentally wrong and continues to encourage the breakdown of the American family. Families are at the core of American society and it is my hope that this bill will fix one disastrous part of Obamacare.
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H.R. 2398
“Social Security Identity Defense Act”
Read the bill here
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I introduced the House version of Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson’s legislation. Currently, government agencies are not required to inform someone if their identity has been stolen. The Social Security Identity Defense Act would require the Internal Revenue Service to inform Americans if their identity has been compromised and require the Social Security Administration to notify employers who have employees with mismatched Social Security numbers in their employment records. This legislation would also create stiffer penalties on criminals who steal consumer’s identities.
Identity theft is a major problem in Wisconsin and all across our country. Over ten million Americans are victims of identity theft every year, which means there is a new victim of identity theft every two seconds.
The IRS and the Social Security Administration should do everything in their power to immediately inform victims of identity theft. It is my hope that this legislation will crack down on criminals and help victims of identity theft get their financial lives back in order.
Just recently, a data breach at the IRS revealed more than 100,000 taxpayer accounts. This kind of breach at the IRS demands stricter standards from government agencies. Americans deserve to know that their identity is being compromised and if an issue like this arises in the future they are notified immediately. It is my hope this data breach is fully investigated and I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass my bill to protect Americans from identity theft.
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| Katelyn Lavrenz - Winner of the Sixth District Congressional Art Competition |
1st Place: Katelyn Lavrenz, Fond du Lac High School
2nd Place: Emily Vallo, Kohler High School
3rd Place: Emma Kost, Kiel High School
Honorable Mention: Molly Schneider, Fond du Lac High School
We look forward to seeing Katelyn's artwork displayed in the Capitol over the next year. |
Thanks for taking time to read my newsletter. Please forward this on to your family and friends to keep them up-to-date on what's happening in Washington and Wisconsin's Sixth District.
Sincerely,
Glenn Grothman
United States Representative |
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