Press Release

Representative Ami Bera, M.D. (D-CA) today voted to pass the Build Back Better Act, landmark legislation that will make generational investments in American families by lowering child care and health care costs, cutting taxes for the middle class, and creating millions of good-paying jobs across the country.

"Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, American families were burdened with high everyday costs, from soaring health care and prescription drug costs, to unaffordable child care and housing," said Representative Bera. "The Build Back Better Act delivers once-in-a-generation action to lower costs for American families while strengthening the backbone of our country – the middle class. This legislation will provide American families with a historic middle-class tax cut, expand access to health care, make child care affordable and accessible for every American family, create millions of good-paying jobs over the next decade, and help fight climate change. I am proud to help deliver this historic bill for Sacramento County families and small businesses, and I urge the Senate to quickly pass this legislation so the President can sign it into law."

How the Bera-supported Build Back Better Act will benefit California:

• Lower health care costs: The Build Back Better Act will close the Medicaid coverage gap to help millions of Americans gain insurance and extend the health insurance premium reductions from the American Rescue Plan. In California, these reductions mean 419,000 uninsured people will gain coverage and 451,100 Californians will save hundreds of dollars per year.
• Lower child care costs: The average annual cost for child care in California is $17,384. The Build Back Better Act will expand access to child care for over 2.2 million young children per year for families earning under 2.5 times the California median income and ensure these families pay no more than 7% of their income on high-quality child care.
• Expand access to preschool: The Build Back Better Act will enable California to expand access to free, high-quality preschool to 800,000 additional 3- and 4-year-olds per year.
• Extend tax cuts for middle class families: The Build Back Better Act will provide 35 million families with a major tax cut by extending the Child Tax Credit through 2022.
• Provide nutritious food options for children: 13% of children in California face food insecurity. The Build Back Better Act will expand access to free school meals to an additional 1.1 million students during the school year and providing 3.9 million students with resources to purchase food over the summer.
• Reduce housing costs and expand housing options: 3 million renters in California spend more than 30% of their income on rent, while homeownership remains out of reach for many families. The Build Back Better Act will expand rental assistance for California renters, while increasing the supply of high-quality housing through the construction and rehabilitation of over 1 million affordable housing units nationwide.
• Address the threat of climate change: The Build Back Better Act is the largest effort to combat climate change in American history, investing $555 billion over 10 years in clean energy and climate investment that supports good-paying jobs and grows domestic industries.

Rep. Bera voted earlier this month for the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, which was signed into law on Monday by President Biden. Together, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill and the Build Back Better Act will create an average of 2 million jobs each year over the course of the next decade.

The Build Back Better Act now heads to the Senate for consideration, which is expected to vote on the legislation before the end of the year.