Subcommittee on Health Care and Financial Services Chairman Glenn Grothman (R-Wis.) addressed a hearing titled "Mandates, Meddling, and Mismanagement: The IRA’s Threat to Energy and Medicine." Grothman criticized the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), claiming it failed to control spending, increased taxes for average Americans, and favored wealthy Democratic donors. He stated that the act promoted waste, fraud, and abuse without reducing inflation.
In his prepared remarks, Grothman described the IRA as one of the most disastrous pieces of legislation from the Biden administration. He argued that despite its name, the act did little to curb inflation resulting from spending by President Biden and congressional Democrats. According to Grothman, the Congressional Budget Office acknowledged this failure.
Grothman claimed that the act focused on advancing a "green" agenda benefiting Democratic allies. He cited an estimate from the Cato Institute suggesting the bill might cost taxpayers up to $1.97 trillion over ten years and increase the deficit by $300 billion by 2033.
He pointed out that billions in subsidies for "green" energy projects were included in the IRA, describing it as corporate welfare for elite climate radicals. He argued these tax credits benefited high-income earners rather than average Americans.
Grothman noted that additions made in the IRA complicated the tax system further, with its code exceeding four million words and costing Americans $300 billion annually in tax compliance. He expressed satisfaction that many wasteful tax subsidies are being phased out in a Republican reconciliation bill.
Grothman also criticized claims that the IRA makes healthcare more affordable for seniors. He said it resulted in higher Medicare Part D premiums and fewer plan options for seniors while extending pandemic-era Obamacare subsidies to families earning six-figure incomes.
Quoting economist Milton Friedman, he emphasized concerns about government programs' permanence and urged Congress not to extend these subsidies beyond their current expiration at year's end.
The hearing aims to analyze what Grothman perceives as damage caused by the Inflation Reduction Act and discuss repealing many of its provisions during this Congress session.
