America Needs Build Back Better

Joe Biden and Democrats in congress appear to be losing the messaging battle on his Build Back Better plan. Opponents simply shout about the cost and debt and much of the public reacts in fear. In reality much of the cost is covered by simply restoring the tax rates in place prior to Trump’s big giveaway to big business and the wealthiest among us. Even more is covered by returning to full funding of the IRS so it can collect on taxes due from tax cheats that it is unable to investigate and prosecute due to being underfunded and understaffed. Of course one of the reasons the plan is being bashed is that the wealthy tax cheats don’t want to fund the IRS so it can catch them.

The plan includes increases in educational opportunities by providing two years of free community college for all students, regardless of family income. The bill would also add $80 billion in funding for Pell Grants since funding for the program hasn't kept pace with the increasing cost of college in recent decades. It’s been clear for some years that pre-K makes a big difference in educational achievement especially to lower income children who often don’t get the kind of parental attention young minds need to fully develop. The Build Back Better plan will provide two years of universal pre-K for 3- and 4-year-olds.

For older Americans the bill would expand Medicare to include coverage of dental, hearing and vision services. Given the benefits healthy teeth and gums including protecting against heart disease it’s a wonder dental care isn’t already part of Medicare.

The Build Back Better plan aims to fix one of the problems with Medicare Part D that wasn’t addressed in the Affordable Care Act a decade ago. Americans on average pay two to three times as much as people in other countries for prescription drugs. Provisions in the legislation would allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices to get the best deal which it is currently prohibited by law from doing. Of course the pharmaceutical industry is spending millions of dollars on ads, campaign contributions, and lobbyists to fight this change just as they did back in 2009 and 2010.

The provisions I’m most interested in have to do with combating climate change. Slowing the rate at which Earth warms will mean transitioning away from fossil fuels, the major source of greenhouse gas emissions. One provision that Democratic Senator Joe Manchin has objected to is the $150 billion "clean electricity performance program," which would pay utility companies that increase their renewable energy supplies by 4% per year. Companies that do not hit this benchmark would face financial penalties. The bill also provides significant funding for forest management and other wildfire control measures. There are also measures to incentivize the buying of electric vehicles and the construction of charging stations; consumer rebates to homeowners who weatherize their houses; and financial penalties for oil and gas producers for methane leaks, among other things. Manchin’s family and major campaign donors are heavily invested in coal mining which stands to suffer further reductions as coal fired electric plants are phased out so his opposition is self-serving and not in the best interests of either his constituents or the American people.

There’s plenty more in the bill including paid family and medical leave and a wide range of other areas that would serve to improve the lot of most Americans. It would be a shame if fear of change prevented us from having what every other advanced nation on earth has.

Published in the Seguin Gazette - October 20, 2021