WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Thursday, Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch and Rep. Jim Matheson were joined on Capitol Hill by Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., and Rep. Charles Boustany, R-La., as well as members of the Stop the HIT Coalition to highlight the six-month countdown to repeal the health insurance tax included in the president’s health law.

In the Senate, Hatch and Barrasso have introduced legislation (S. 603) to repeal the tax on job creators and their employees. Matheson and Boustany have introduced companion legislation (H.R. 763) in the House of Representatives. According to the Joint Committee on Taxation, eliminating the HIT would save an average family $350 to $400 in 2016 alone.

“The president promised that the health law would lower health care costs and reduce premiums by $2,500,” Hatch said. “We told him before the law passed that there was no way he could keep this promise. And here we are today watching Obamacare unravel as middle-class families pay the price. We need to end this assault on small businesses and relieve them from this job crushing law by repealing this health insurance tax and Obamacare in its entirety.”

“This $100 billion tax is a real problem for small businesses in Utah and across the country,” Matheson said. “The health insurance tax ultimately affects those who pay premiums. In this case, that’s small business owners, families and individuals. This tax does not improve the rising cost of health care or encourage healthier lifestyles for consumers. We know already that health insurance costs are one of the largest expenses for small businesses, and the health insurance tax will only exacerbate the problem.”

Additionally, Matheson joined the No Labels Congressional Problem Solvers Coalition, a group of more than 70 Democratic and Republican members of Congress from both chambers, to announce a legislative reform package of nine bills designed to make government more efficient, effective and less wasteful. The “Make Government Work!” package contains nine common sense bills designed to make government more resourceful. Every bill in the package has broad bipartisan support and is backed by at least half the problem solvers.

It is a big step toward restoring trust between lawmakers and eventually strengthening the American people’s trust in the nation’s leaders, Matheson said.

“Americans are frustrated with the partisan gridlock and bickering going on in Washington,” he said. “This year, I began serving as a co-chair of the problem solvers to begin building trust and meaningful relationships across party lines. It’s time Congress works together to get things done.”

Starting in 2014, health insurance companies will be hit with a tax based on their net premiums written in the fully insured market. Of small businesses, 87 percent purchase their insurance in this market, as do self-employed and uninsured citizens. The National Federation of Independent Business predicts this tax could result in 146,000 to 262,000 fewer jobs between now and 2023, with more than half of those losses falling on the backs of small businesses.

Derived from releases submitted by:  The Offices of Sen. Orrin Hatch and Rep. Jim Matheson

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