Finance Committee Closes Out Monumental 114th Congress

Back to Work for the American People

In stride with the Republican-led Senate, the Finance Committee produced significant policy achievements and numerous bipartisan victories that put the American people first during the 114^th Congress.

The committee reported out 41 bipartisan bills - more than any single Congress in the last 35 years and the last four congresses combined – and held 53 hearings.

From enacting robust trade bills to level the playing field for American job creators, workers, and manufacturers; to providing permanent, stable solutions for the Medicare payment system for seniors and the doctors who treat them; to laying the groundwork for comprehensive tax reform by enacting permanent tax relief; the Finance Committee produced real results for the American people.

Both sessions of the 114^th Congress saw monumental bipartisan policy successes:

Set the Stage for Tax Reform

The committee worked to address challenges facing our outdated tax system and shepherded through permanent tax policies to grow our economy and lay the groundwork for comprehensive tax reform. The committee also produced Congress’s only bipartisan report into the Internal Revenue Services (IRS’s) treatment of organizations applying for tax-exempt status, which made a series of good-government recommendations the IRS later implemented.

Expanded Opportunities Through Smart Trade Policies

The committee advanced a robust trade agenda that provides the tools necessary to negotiate high-standard trade agreements that will create jobs and expand opportunities for American workers. Bills were also advanced and signed into law to authorize and modernize our nation’s customs system, renew and enhance our nation’s trade preference programs including the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) and the African Growth and Opportunity Act, and reform the process for Congressional consideration of Miscellaneous Tariff Bills.

Signed into Law: Bipartisan Trade Promotion Authority
Signed into Law: The Bipartisan Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act (Customs Bill)
Signed into Law: Trade Preferences Extension Act (AGAO Extension and Enhancement Act of 2015)
Signed into Law: The Bipartisan Manufacturing Competitiveness Act

Enhanced Progress, Permanence, and Oversight for Patients, Providers & Entitlement Programs

The committee achieved results for American patients and providers by producing a bill that was the foundation for repealing and replacing the Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR), also known as the “Doc Fix”, with an improved payment system – ending a yearly worry for American seniors once and for all. The committee also played an important role in delaying and suspending a number of burdensome Obamacare health taxes and helped to empower disabled workers by providing much needed improvements to the administration of the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program – including preventing benefit cuts and shoring up the SSDI trust fund. Elsewhere, the Committee charted the course in addressing costly chronic conditions in Medicare with patient-centered care, while also providing much needed oversight into the areas of concurrent surgeries and physician-owned distributorships (PODs).

Signed into Law: Repealed the Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR)
Signed into Law: Slashed Obamacare’s Burdensome Healthcare Taxes
Signed into Law: Long Overdue Improvements to Social Security Disability Insurance
Introduced Bill to Address Chronic Care
Released Bipartisan Report on Concurrent and Overlapping Surgeries
Updated Report on Physician-Owned Distributorships

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