In today’s political environment, it’s tough to find areas in which we can work together, but I was proud to be part of a bipartisan effort to ensure Americans can retire with dignity and security. The House passed H.R. 2954, the Securing a Strong Retirement Act, or the SECURE Act of 2022, which incorporated a bill I championed, the RISE Act, in order to create a comprehensive effort to reform America’s retirement system. It includes smart reforms to make it easier to save and equip future retirees for financial success. Especially in a time of rising prices and high inflation, we must do all we can to ensure that workers are entering into retirement with enough savings to provide for their future.
The Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2022 will:
- Provide American workers more opportunities to begin saving for a secure retirement
- Raise the minimum age for required account distributions so Americans don’t have to withdraw funds before they are ready
- Allow late-career workers to contribute more to catch up
- Help employers contribute to their workers' retirement accounts while the employee is paying down their student loans
I spoke on the House Floor in support of this bill, which you can watch HERE.
This bipartisan legislation is the much-needed push towards modernization. Our economy has evolved, and so have the ways Americans plan for retirement. Worker access to employer-sponsored retirement plans has improved over the last three decades, and participation has grown; however, there remains room for improvement, as too many Americans still lack access to these benefits. This bill cuts red tape, streamlines reporting and disclosure requirements, and provides American workers more opportunities to begin saving for a secure retirement.
To learn more about the SECURE Act of 2022, please visit my website HERE.
Introducing the Employee Rights Act of 2022
I recently introduced the Employee Rights Act of 2022 with my good friend and colleague Senator Tim Scott from South Carolina. The Employee Rights Act of 2022 updates our labor policies to protect and empower the modern worker. Democrats continue to push their out-of-touch, big labor wishlist in the PRO Act, which tilts the scale towards non-elected union leaders, tramples employees’ rights and pre-empts state right to work laws. Meanwhile, Republicans are focused on the worker of today and the future.
The Employee Rights Act of 2022:
- Combats Democrats’ radical labor agenda by protecting employees’ privacy, union membership dues and the union election process from being abused by union bosses.
- Ensures all employees, independent contractors and new gig economy workers can rely on a standardized definition of who is an “employee” and who is a “joint employer” so they can focus solely on growing their businesses and providing for their employees.
This week, I spoke on the House Floor to highlight the provisions of the bill.
As a businessman, I’ve experienced firsthand the consequences of big-government overregulation, and I’m thankful for the support of dozens of pro-worker and pro-business groups who support the Employee Rights Act of 2022. To learn more about my bill and the groups supporting, please visit my website HERE.
Touring Dunkin’ Donuts
Last week I had a great visit to a Dunkin’ Donuts franchise in Augusta. We discussed issues facing their business including workforce shortages and supply chain problems. I even got the opportunity to try my hand in the kitchen! Franchising creates opportunities in communities across the district and the Employee Rights Act would protect the franchising business model and their employees.
President Biden’s Budget is Dead on Arrival
President Biden released his FY2023 budget—and it’s dead on arrival. Americans are already struggling with rising prices and the highest inflation in 40 years. President Biden’s budget will only make this crisis worse. This reckless spending is full of woke policies that will do nothing to address the critical issues facing Americans today. When will the rampant, runaway spending stop? President Biden’s budget calls for the highest sustained level of government spending in the history of the United States, increasing our debt to $45 trillion in the next 10 years and raising taxes.
Energy independence is a national security issue, and President Biden is calling for a tax increase on American energy producers. We’re already in an energy crisis, Mr. President—why are you trying to make it worse?
Additionally, President Biden’s budget will only continue his damaging open border policies like catch-and-release, fails to enforce the Remain in Mexico policy, and mentions border security ZERO times. We’re in the midst of the worst border crisis in 20+ years—not securing our border is just plain irresponsible.
Supporting our Troops
Robin and I joined a few of our friends and helped pack over 1,000 care packages to send to our troops! We must do all we can to support the men and women who so bravely protect our nation.
President Biden’s Misguided Iran Deal
It's alarming that the Biden Administration is considering removing Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist group. We must continue to exert maximum pressure to ensure organizations like the IRGC do not further threaten democracy. Almost 90 of my colleagues and I wrote a letter that did just that, demanding Secretary Blinken keep IRGC on the foreign terrorist organization list. We must continue to hold the Biden Administration accountable as he pursues a misguided and weak nuclear deal with Iran without consulting Congress.
That is why I am also a proud cosponsor of H.R. 7330, Keeping Israel Safe from Iranian Proxies Act. Israel is our indispensable ally, and we must always protect them from bad actors, such as Iran-backed entities like Hamas and Hezbollah. H.R. 7330 would require the Department of Defense to report on military capabilities of Iran-backed entities and the economic impact that suspending sanctions would have on them, and prohibit any tax dollars from going directly or indirectly to these entities.
Meeting with Local Chambers of Commerce
I was excited to talk with a few of the local Chambers of Commerce on the issues impacting their community and the importance of growing and equipping our workforce with the skills necessary for the local job market. We also discussed upcoming legislation in the Education and Labor Committee and how we can best meet the workforce needs in Georgia.
2022 Congressional Art Competition
The Congressional Art Competition is a special tradition that provides high school students the opportunity to display their art for the country to see. This contest is open to all high school students (9th – 12th grade) in Georgia’s 12th district. The winning piece will be displayed for one year in the U.S. Capitol, and its student artist will receive an invitation to travel to Washington D.C. to attend the national winners’ reception. Submitted artwork must be original in concept, design, and execution and must depict life in the 12th District of Georgia. All artwork must be submitted by April 20th; for more information and official rules, please visit: https://allen.house.gov/constituent-services/arts-competition.htm.
As I mentioned earlier, President Biden recently released his FY23 budget. Included was a proposal to eliminate the stepped-up basis, which is a longstanding tax provision that prevents heirs from having to pay capital gains on inherited assets like land, buildings or equipment. Farmers will be forced out of business and our nation will grow increasingly dependent on foreign agriculture products if Biden gets his wish and the “death tax” is enacted on our farmers. That’s why, this week, I and more than 70 of my colleagues introduced House Resolution 1015, which recognizes the important role of the stepped-up basis in preserving our nation’s family-owned farms. It’s clear that President Biden is out of touch with rural America and the effects his take hikes will have on the agriculture industry.
As always, my office is here to help. You can email me ⇒ HERE, contact any of our offices or join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
God Bless,
Rick Allen
Member of Congress
