Today, U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Tampa/St. Petersburg, FL) voted against the destructive Republican budget that raises taxes on middle-class families, substantially shifts Medicare and long-term care costs to seniors, cripples job creation by eliminating smart investments, and pushes quality education further out of reach for many students. The Republican budget passed the House 219-205.

“The people I know and meet work very hard every day and want an opportunity for a good job, good schools, safe communities and the promise that when they retire they can live their years in dignity,” Rep. Castor said while speaking against the Republican budget on the House floor. “They want a government that is fair and makes progress towards the American dream. But this Republican budget is not for the hardworking people of America. This Republican budget is crafted by the special interests for the special interests. Republicans stack the deck against working families and small businesses.” 

The Republican budget gives tax breaks to millionaires, and asks middle-class families to pay more. A Citizens for Tax Justice analysis finds that under the Ryan Republican plan, “taxpayers with income exceeding $1 million in 2015 would receive an average net tax decrease of over $200,000 that year.”

The Republican budget hits seniors hard with huge cuts to long-term nursing care and its move to Medicare voucher-style system – the so called premium support plan which sends seniors to the private insurance market with a coupon of set value that doesn’t come close to the cost of insurance.

Another drastic change to Medicare as we know it, is seniors will be forced to pay more for preventive services and prescription drugs.

In addition, 4.3 million seniors will be impacted when the GOP budget re-opens the donut hole. 

The AARP swiftly panned the Republican Budget, stating that it “fails to address the high costs  of health care and instead shifts costs onto seniors and future retirees…Removing the Medicare guarantee of affordable health coverage for older Americans by implementing a premium support system and asking seniors and future retirees to pay more is not the right direction.”

According to the Economic Policy Institute, the Republican budget costs jobs and slows America’s recovery – costing up to 1.1 million jobs in fiscal year 2015, and rising up to 3 million jobs next year. 

“Republicans ignore one of the most important ways to cut the debt and deficit, and that is to have more Americans working,” Rep. Castor said. “If you’re a student who wants to attend college, then Republicans make that harder by cutting Pell grants and student loans. If you have a job in construction, at an American port, or in transportation, this Republican budget could cost you your job and new opportunities.”

The Committee for Education Funding, which represents more than 100 national education associations and institutions, warns that the Republican budget “will cause irreparable harm to children, students, schools, libraries, museums and colleges.” 

Rep. Castor serves on the Budget Committee and sponsored more than 10 amendments to change the harsh Republican budget, including an amendment to undo harmful cuts to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and support innovative U.S. cancer research centers and universities as global leaders in medical and scientific research.

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