Tester Announces Support for Inflation Reduction Act to Reduce Deficit, Lower Costs for Working Families

U.S. Senator Jon Tester today announced his support for the Inflation Reduction Act, targeted legislation to lower costs for families and small businesses.

“I plan to vote for the Inflation Reduction Act because Montana families and small businesses have been hit hard by rising costs, and this bill will pay down the deficit, cut prescription drug prices, and unleash American energy, all without raising taxes on Montana families. The Inflation Reduction Act is fully paid-for and then some, and it will increase American energy production. Montanans want solutions to fight inflation and create jobs, and I would encourage my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join me in supporting this fiscally responsible legislation.”

The Inflation Reduction Act is fully paid-for legislation providing targeted resources that will:

• Provide hundreds of billions of dollars to pay down America’s deficit—the largest debt reduction in more than a decade. Paying down the deficit will fight inflation, grow the economy, and provide economic certainty for future generations of Montanans.

• Lower costs for Montana families and seniors by:
  • Allowing Medicare to use its purchasing power to negotiate drug prices, ensuring older Americans pay fairer prices for their prescription medication.
  • Extending the affordable health care subsidies through 2025, preventing insurance premium hikes for thousands of Montanans.
  • Capping out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs for Medicare beneficiaries at $2,000 per year, beginning in 2024.

• Unleash American energy production, securing Montana’s energy future and making the United States less reliant on our adversaries like Russia and China by:
  • Expanding offshore oil and gas leasing in Alaska and the Gulf of Mexico.
  • Ensuring the Department of Interior continues offering oil and gas lease sales while developing renewable energy on public lands.
  • Extending and expanding tax credits for investments in and the production of renewable energy, as well as creating new credits that grow American manufacturing jobs.