Input Stories

NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons spoke to one of the chief architects of last year’s landmark tax legislation, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (R-MO), this week. Their “fireside chat” was part of a conference on Capitol Hill hosted by the Tax Foundation, the NAM and other partners.

The legislation: “The bill that you shepherded through last year opened the door to transformative investments, job creation, growth in manufacturing and, most importantly, gave manufacturers the certainty and confidence they needed to make investments in the future. Put simply, manufacturing would not be as well-positioned as we are without H.R. 1,” Timmons told Chairman Smith.

• “When you talk about certainty, this bill created the most certainty of any tax bill since 1986,” Chairman Smith said. “There is more permanent policy in this bill than there has been since I was 6 years old, when the Reagan tax cuts were enacted.”
• “We made permanent 199A for small businesses. We made permanent bonus depreciation. We made permanent interest deductibility. We made permanent research and development expensing. We made permanent the child tax credit. We made permanent every tax rate. That hasn’t happened in more than 40 years.”

An enduring win: Timmons asked Chairman Smith how manufacturers can help ensure these tax policies endure through other administrations.

• “I think it rests on the people benefiting from the provisions constantly being public and communicating the wins and benefits—what the small business deduction does, what bonus depreciation allows for and what a permanent international tax code helps affect,” Chairman Smith replied.
• To communicate the benefits of the legislation, “I have been pushing the members of my committee and my team: I want real stories from real people,” Chairman Smith said. “Having real people walk in and tell you what they think about their tax problems is substantial.”

Telling stories: Timmons also emphasized why telling manufacturers’ stories matters. “Businesses are often shy about sharing what positive impact any legislation or regulatory change has made. So at the NAM, we are encouraging our members to do exactly that. We have told them that there are no stories that are too many.”

• “What would be great are stories that a new manufacturing facility is 100% expensing new factories,” Chairman Smith added. “If, because of bonus depreciation, you’ve been able to invest millions of dollars in new machinery, tell us. Or because of various provisions you were able to increase the salaries of your employees, we need to hear that.”

Wins for Americans: Timmons mentioned Ketchie President and Owner and NAM Executive Committee member Courtney Silver, whose facility he visited in North Carolina earlier this year. Silver introduced Timmons to a young man who worked on a new machine purchased thanks to H.R. 1.

• “He’s 19, and because of that job, he was able to apply for a mortgage and become the first person in his family to ever purchase a home. That is real,” said Timmons. “These are the people I want you to meet,” Timmons told Chairman Smith, “because I tell you, he will thank you. He is so grateful for what H.R. 1 has done for him.”
• Chairman Smith told the story of a waitress, a single mother with three kids who received a refund of more than $10,000 thanks to various provisions in the tax legislation. “Those are the stories that need to be on camera,” he added.

The last word: After taking audience questions, Timmons wrapped up the chat, telling Chairman Smith, “I just can’t thank you enough from the perspective of manufacturers in America who want to invest more, hire more and raise wages and benefits for their workers. Your leadership will make a difference for many years to come.”

Send us your story! To share your own story on how the landmark tax law impacted you, please reach out to NAM Senior Director of Tax Policy Connor Rabb.