Paperwork Burden Reduction Act

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3797) to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide an alternative manner of furnishing certain health insurance coverage statements to individuals, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and submit extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

If you visit any Main Street in America, you will see that small businesses are struggling. Today's cost of living crisis has made everything from supplies to labor more expensive for mom-and-pop stores all across America.

Not only are small businesses struggling because of high prices, but Washington mandates are forcing small businesses to waste precious time processing paperwork instead of serving their workers and customers.

Right now, small businesses are forced to send millions of Americans paper copies of health insurance reporting forms every year, when the vast majority of individuals don't use this form.

Every taxpayer knows this form I am talking about. While it is known as a Form 1095-C, it is one that you get in the mail and have absolutely no idea what to do with. It looks like this, and you put it in the pile with your other tax forms and then realize when it comes time to file your taxes, you don't actually even need it.

In fact, only 1.4 percent of American workers and their families may need to use this form. The Paperwork Burden Reduction Act is a bipartisan bill, introduced by Representative Panetta and myself, that will put an end to this wasteful practice.

This bill saves small business owners time and money by relieving them of mailing outdated paperwork that only exists because Congress mandates it.

This mandate doesn't even make sense anymore. The origins of this paperwork were to prove compliance with the individual mandate of the Affordable Care Act, a mandate whose enforcement was zeroed out years ago.

Not only will small businesses have more time to focus on running a business, but this bill also recognizes how Americans actually file taxes. Now more than ever, Americans fill out their tax returns online. There is no reason that American workers should not be able to access this health insurance tax form online, as well.

I thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for supporting this measure that will eliminate needless paperwork for working Americans and small business job creators.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I am prepared to close.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, back home in our districts, we have heard from workers and small business owners about the struggles they face in today's economy. Today, with this legislation before us, we finally have a chance to give them a bit of a break.

The Paperwork Burden Reduction Act will get rid of a Washington mandate that requires small businesses to waste time mailing unnecessary paperwork instead of serving their employees and customers. Not only will it save small business owners time, but it will also help them modernize their operations by letting workers access their health insurance tax forms online.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill and help us deliver relief to workers and small business owners across America.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3797, the Paperwork Burden Reduction Act.

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide an alternative process for providing individuals with certain health insurance coverage statements.

H.R. 3797 allows American workers to access health insurance tax forms online, rather than mailing this form in excess to American households.

While only 1.4 percent of American workers and their families need this form, it gets mailed to millions each year, wasting taxpayer resources, and creating more work for small businesses.

This bill recognizes that more Americans than ever fill out their tax returns online and allows them to access this health insurance tax form online as well.

This bill saves small businesses owners time and money by relieving them of mailing excess copies of outdated paperwork.

As a result, small businesses will now have more time to focus on running their business, providing opportunities for their employees, expanding their business, and serving their customers.

In my home district of Houston, nearly 97 percent of the region's businesses are considered small businesses.

These small businesses employ 44 percent of the region's workforce, over 1.2 million employees across the city of Houston.

These small businesses continue to rise as over 150,000 new business applications were filed across Houston last year.

The city ranks 10th nationally in new businesses per capita and these businesses continue to drive the city's economic growth upwards.

Further, nearly 35 percent of these small businesses with 50 or fewer employees are minority-owned and Houston ranks 5th in the nation for minority entrepreneurship.

Small businesses are not only vital for Houston, but for our entire Nation.

Across America, small businesses account for over fifty-nine million jobs, constituting nearly half of the national workforce.

Overall, they generate one third of all U.S. business revenue, approximately 13.7 trillion dollars annually.

This bill relieves the burden of outdated paperwork on these small businesses and best equips them for success in Houston and nationwide.

I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 3797, the Paperwork Burden Reduction Act, and the economic growth of our Nation, which is fueled by small businesses.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, let me first thank Chairman Smith, not only for articulating the exact reasons as to why we must support the Paperwork Burden Reduction Act, but for sharing this opportunity to co-lead on such a commonsense measure that will benefit taxpayers, not just in my Congressional District, the 19th District in California, but so many people all across this country.

The bipartisan Paperwork Burden Reduction Act will ease confusion for taxpayers by reducing the paperwork that is necessary for filing taxes for small business employers and their employees.

Under current law, employers must send a 1095 tax form to employees to verify their health coverage for the previous year. However, for many employees, the IRS no longer requires this form for them to complete their taxes. So the Paperwork Burden Reduction Act would allow employers to provide a 1095-B or a 1095-C form upon request from employees, rather than mandating it and wasting time, wasting money, and wasting paper.

It is a bill that is popular, not just among taxpayers, but Democrats and

Republicans alike, as demonstrated by its passage out of the Ways and Means Committee without a single vote in opposition.

It is understandable why it is so popular because the one thing that we can all agree on is that we need to reduce unnecessary burdens on taxpayers and small businesses.

Now, although the Biden administration has already ordered this, I am proud to join Chairman Smith and put that order into statute, and I would urge my colleagues to vote for the Paperwork Burden Reduction Act.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, it is not every day that we can come together on such a straightforward issue, and I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense, bipartisan legislation, the Paperwork Burden Reduction Act.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Committee on Finance be further discharged from consideration of H.R. 3797 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

I further ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed, and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.