HOUSE PASSES BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL

Written by Michael Thervil

Photo by Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP Photo

[House passes Big Beautiful Bill] While the passing of President Trump “One Big Beautiful Bill” or “Big Beautiful Bill” for short  is celebrated as a milestone, for many other people it's considered to be a huge step backwards. The Big Beautiful Bill was passed through the U.S. House of Representatives in one of the most polarizing votes to date of the Trump Administration. With no Democrats (212) voting in favor of the Big Beautiful Bill and 100% of Republicans (218) voting in favor of the bill, there's a lot to unpack when it comes to how the passing of the Big Beautiful Bill will affect the average American. From the extending of 2017 tax cuts to cutting taxes on some tips and overtime adding $4.5 trillion to the pockets of American’s, lies a sort of balancing act that is considered by many to be “complex”.

Looking at the positives, the Big Beautiful Bill increases funding for  border security and military, the raising of the debt ceiling to $5 trillion which would possibly prevent the federal government from defaulting on its debt. Another grand recipient of the big beautiful big would go to wealthy Americans. Looking at the negatives, the Big Beautiful Bill would severely cut social programs such as Medicaid ($1 trillion) and could leave an estimated 17 million people without health insurance by 2034.

With Medicaid cuts being a part of the Big Beautiful Bill, it would force many senior care facilities to reduce the type of services they offer to seniors within their care. Although The Big Beautiful Bill would put $5 trillion toward aiding the federal government from defaulting on its debt, it would at the same time add $3.4 trillion to the national debt within 10 years. Another con would be that the Big Beautiful Bill would severely slash EBT/SNAP benefits (food stamps) for millions of Americans while adding new work requirements for these same Americans as well.

Democrats within the House of Representatives put up a passionate protest against the passing of the Big Beautiful Bill, while it was grossly passed by Republicans, there was a sizable number of Republicans within the House that were also not in direct favor of the passing of the Big Beautiful Bill. Republican Senator of Alaska Lisa Murkowski stated that the passing of the Big Beautiful Bill “has been an awful process – a frantic rush to meet an artificial deadline that has tested every limit of this institution”.

Senior citizens would have a tax break of $6,000 per person for those that earn $75,000. Seniors that earn over this cap would see deduction decreases (pay more in taxes). The Big Beautiful Bill also increases child tax credits to $2,200 per child and $1,000 for babies and is set to increase as inflation increases over time. Another clause in the Big Beautiful Bill when it comes to children is that for Americans that wish to adopt children, they would get $5,000 in child tax credits and this amount is set to increase as inflation increases over time. With the Trump Administration using the passing of the Big Beautiful Bill to stop the expiration of his tax cuts at the end of this year, he also coupled it with raising the standard deduction of $15,750 per individual and keeping 2017 lower tax rates in effect.

Under the Big Beautiful Bill, Poorer Americans will lose more in benefits while saving more in taxes. Middle class Americans who do not receive any government subsidies are said to greatly benefit from the Big Beautiful Bill in terms of saving when it comes to state and local taxes from federal taxable income. Higher income Americans are also said to gain the most from the Big Beautiful Bill. Americans earning $150,000 to $1 million plus are set to benefit the greatest.  For Americans that rely on tips, under the Big Beautiful Bill they would be eligible to save up to $25,000 from taxation on their tips.

Immigrants without a social security number will have no benefits and will lose any benefits that they currently receive. Americans in college will lose access to the Biden Administration’s student loan forgiveness plan. For American whose income falls between 110% to 138% of the federal poverty line ($32,000 - $44,000 [family of four]) and who are receiving Medicaid under the 2010 Affordable Healthcare Act (Obamacare) and Americans between the ages of 19-64 will have to prove that they are working (80 hours), attending school, or volunteering. Americans that fall into this category would have to submit paycheck stubs or other required paperwork every 6 months or risk forfeiting their benefits.