File photo.
Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick voted with fellow Republicans against the Democratic-backed legislation titled the Inflation Reduction Act last Friday in Washington D.C.
Fitzpatrick, a three-term Middletown Township Republican running for re-election, voted with GOP colleagues in the party-line 220-207 vote.
Democrats have heralded the bill as a major win for their agenda. It includes $375 billion over 10 years for the fight against climate change and investing in new technology, reducing pharmaceutical costs, providing new funds and resources to fight a drought out west, and rework tax rules for large companies.
Republicans vehemently opposed the bill. They called much of it wasteful spending that would raise taxes and increase the cost of life for families. Members of the GOP have also said the higher corporate taxes enacted under the measure will force companies to raise prices and exacerbate the country’s struggle with its worst inflation since 1981.
While Fitzpatrick voted with his GOP peers, he did not comment to LevittownNow.com on his vote. He also did not issue a press release on it via his website or social media.
“Brian Fitzpatrick voted against the interests of the residents of Bucks and Montgomery counties when he opposed reducing inflation, lowering prescription drug costs, and tackling the climate crisis. He should be ashamed of this clearly partisan and wrong-headed vote bought and paid for by the corporate interests who control the Republican Party’s extreme agenda,” said Ashley Ehasz, the Democrat running against Fitzpatrick.
The bill passed the U.S. Senate with Vice President Kamala Harris casting the tie-breaking vote.
President Joe Biden will sign the bill on Tuesday, the White House announced.
Over the course of a decade, the plan would generate roughly $740 billion in federal revenue, with more than a third coming from government savings due to cheaper prescription prices. A greater amount would result from higher taxes on firms with revenues of $1 billion or more, taxes on businesses that buy back their own stock, and improved tax collections.
While it is named the Inflation Reduction Act, a nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office analysis of the bill projects it will have only a small impact on curbing inflation.
“The Inflation Reduction Act will lower costs for families, combat the climate crisis, reduce the deficit, and finally ask the largest corporations to pay their fair share. President Biden and Congressional Democrats have worked together to deliver a historic legislative achievement that defeats special interests, delivers for American families, and grows the economy from the bottom up and middle out,” a White House statement provided to this news organization stated.
The Inflation Reduction Act’s development began in early 2021 and a surprise announcement this summer revived it.
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