Washington, DC: Today, Congressman Mike Turner (R-OH) and Congressman Tim Ryan (D-OH) sent a bipartisan letter to House Leadership reaffirming their strong support for the passage of an extension of the Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC) as part of a year-end tax extenders bill before the 113th Congress adjourns for the year.
The HCTC helps struggling American families pay their health bills, including thousands of Delphi Salaried Retirees whose pensions were terminated during the GM rescue and subsequently turned over to the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation.
In March of this year, Reps. Turner and Ryan joined a delegation of 28 Members and Senators from across the country in sending a letter to both House and Senate leadership pushing for pushing for the extension of the Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC).
In July 2013, Reps. Turner and Ryan introduced legislation that would have provided the Delphi Salaried Retirees and other eligible individuals the choice of continuing within the Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC) program past the program’s December 31, 2013 termination date, or upon leaving the program.
The full text of today's letter can be found below:
November 20, 2014
The Honorable John Boehner The Honorable Nancy Pelosi
Speaker of the House Minority Leader
U.S. House of Representatives U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515 Washington, D.C. 20515
The Honorable David Camp The Honorable Sander Levin
Chairman Ranking Member
Committee on Ways and Means Committee on Ways and Means
U.S. House of Representatives U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515 Washington, D.C. 20515
Dear Speaker Boehner, Leader Pelosi, Chairman Camp and Ranking Member Levin:
We wish to reaffirm our strong support for passing an extension of the Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC) as part of a year-end tax extenders bill before the 113th Congress adjourns for the year. As you know, an extension of the HCTC was included in the Senate’s tax extenders bill and we urge you to include it in the House tax extenders bill as well. The Senate provision, supported by Senate Sherrod Brown and Senator Rob Portman, mirrors H.R.2783, a bill we introduced by in the House. A March 2014 letter supporting the HCTC was signed by 28 Members of Congress and Senators from across the country, and is attached for your reference.
Across the country, the HCTC has helped tens of thousands of struggling families pay their health bills. These families include thousands of Delphi retirees whose pensions were terminated during the GM rescue and subsequently turned over to the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation. As you know well, many of 20,000 Delphi salaried retirees lost significant portions of their promised pensions.
Without the HCTC, which expired on January 1, 2014, these salaried retirees face financial hardship with up to 50 percent of their remaining pension going to fund their health care premiums. The Delphi retirees have spent all of this year paying for health care out of their own modest income. If Congress fails to act, these retirees will continue to struggle to pay their health care expenses. This is an issue that cannot wait. We urge you to pass the tax extenders bill that includes the two-year extension of the HCTC before the 113th Congress adjourns.
Thank you for your attention to this important issue.
Sincerely,
Michael R. Turner
Member of Congress
Tim Ryan
Member of Congress