North Columbus News

U.S. Representative Mike Carey of Ohio's 15th District has voted in favor of the Republican budget reconciliation bill, which aims to provide significant tax relief to various groups including workers, families, seniors, small businesses, and farmers. This legislation has passed both the House of Representatives and the Senate and is now set to be signed into law by President Trump.

Rep. Carey emphasized the bill's impact on preserving economic opportunities for Americans: "Our reconciliation package reinvigorates the American Dream by cutting taxes for families, workers, seniors, small businesses, and farmers. It also provides critical funding to ensure continued security at the border, offers resources for affordable housing, and works to unshackle our economy," he stated.

The bill includes measures such as preventing a potential historic tax increase that would occur if provisions from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) were allowed to expire at the end of 2025. In Carey's district alone, this could have resulted in a $1,500 annual tax increase for median-income households.

Other notable elements of the legislation include a permanent expansion of the Child Tax Credit to $2,200 per child with adjustments for inflation; elimination of taxes on tipped wages and overtime pay; an expanded $6,000 tax credit for seniors; deductions on interest payments for car loans on used American-made vehicles; prevention of increased Death Tax impacts on family-owned farms; maintaining doubled guaranteed Standard Deduction levels; repeal of IRS rules affecting gig workers; renewed incentives for research and development investments by small businesses; substantial funding for border security enhancements; Medicaid protections with work requirements for certain adults; and financial support aimed at rural medical care in Ohio.

"This bill was the product of negotiations from Republicans across the House and Senate to enact President Trump’s central promises," Carey remarked. He expressed pride in supporting this legislation while committing to further efforts benefiting his constituents around Columbus.

The process leading up to this vote included several key legislative steps: passing a budget resolution in April 2025 as groundwork for this bill, advancing many tax provisions through committee discussions in May 2025, and securing initial passage within the House later that month.

Rep. Carey also shared insights about these tax provisions through an op-ed published in The Columbus Dispatch earlier this year.