Today, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 4297, the Tax Relief Act, which provides a two-year extension of the reduced 15% tax rate for capital gains and dividends, currently set to expire at the end of 2008, and saves 15 million families from the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) for an additional year. The bill also contains an extension of Section 179 of the Tax Code allowing small businesses to write off up to $100,000 in investments.

Representative John Culberson said, “These tax cuts reflect our commitment to the Republican principle of allowing taxpayers to keep more of their hard earned money. This bill also marks a major step towards the simplification of our convoluted tax code."

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the economy added 138,000 jobs in the month of April, which marks the 32nd consecutive month of job growth. Overall, our economy has added 2.1 million jobs in the last year, and the unemployment rate is lower than the historical average of the 1960s, 70s, 80s and 90s.

"These numbers clearly show the dramatic effect of the capital gains and dividend tax cuts on our economy. Without these cuts, investments would decline and the engine of our economic growth would stall."

House Ways and Means Committee resource page