Growing the Economy

GROWING THE ECONOMY

Congressman Cline is focused on growing the economy and keeping more money in the pockets of hard-working Americans. The Congressman is fighting to reduce the regulatory burden on businesses and employees and is also committed to lowering taxes that stunt economic growth. He also believes in promoting free trade agreements and policies that benefit farmers and small businesses in Virginia’s Sixth Congressional District.

Below are just a few examples of pieces of legislation Congressman Cline has supported during his tenure to accomplish these goals:

117th Congress:

• H.R. 1712, the Death Tax Repeal Actrepeals the estate tax, also known as the death tax. This tax is, in effect, a double tax on families and taxes property transferred at death. Many family businesses and farms are forced to shut down in order to pay this tax, instead the death tax should be repealed so that the next generation can continue operating and provide strength to their local economy.
• H.R. 3625, the Middle-Class Savings Act aligns the brackets for assessing capital gains taxes with those created in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 to enable middle-class families to invest and save more through the stock market. 
• H.R. 1381, the Main Street Tax Certainty Act makes the 20 percent pass-through small business tax deduction permanent in an effort to support small businesses, help create jobs and strengthen our economy.
• H.R. 1346, the Hospitality and Commerce Job RecoveryAct provides federal tax credits to support the travel, convention, trade show, entertainment, tourism, and hospitality industries across the country impacted by the ongoing pandemic.
• H.R. 2698, the Aluminum Pricing Examination (APEX) Act grants the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) the statutory authority to conduct oversight of the aluminum market and to investigate price setting, benchmarking, and reporting entities.
• H.R. 4181, the Stop Inflationary Spending Act amends the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 to require the Congressional Budget Office to conduct an analysis of the impact on inflation from certain reconciliation legislation reported or submitted pursuant to reconciliation directives in a concurrent resolution on the budget.
• H.Res. 620 the Protect Right to Work expresses support for right-to-work laws that protect workers from being required to join and pay forced dues to a union to get or keep a job.

116th Congress:

• H.R. 2571, the National Right-to-Work Act repeals the provisions of the National Labor Relations Act of 1938 and the Railway Labor Act that permit employers to condition employment on the requirement of employees to join a union.
• H.R. 575, the Lessening Regulatory Costs and Establishing a Federal Regulatory Budget Act of 2019 establishes a system for reducing out-of-date regulations and requiring more efficient regulatory action.

Reforming Congress

REFORMING CONGRESS

Congress was established through Article 1 of the U.S. Constitution, and as such, our Founding Fathers put the utmost responsibility in lawmakers to uphold their inalienable rights.  Sadly, today’s Congress has become overreaching and dysfunctional. Congressman Cline is committed to serving the constituents of Virginia’s Sixth Congressional District by ensuring Congress has the necessary transparency and procedural ability to accomplish meaningful reform. 

Below are just a few examples of pieces of legislation Congressman Cline has supported during his tenure to accomplish these goals:

117th Congress:

• H.R. 872, the One Subject at a Time Act attempts to end the practice of including more than one subject in a single bill by requiring that each bill enacted by Congress be limited to only one subject.

116th Congress:

• H.R. 3403, the Searchable Legislation Act of 2019 establishes a baseline that all bills, resolutions, and documents of Congress be created and stored in a manner that is electronically searchable which would increase transparency.
• H.R. 3402, the Readable Legislation Act of 2019 requires that bills are written in a manner that shows the entire section of code it is amending, which would increase comprehensive knowledge of the effects of the legislation.

Finding Energy Solutions

FINDING ENERGY SOLUTIONS

With the abundance of energy sources right here in the Commonwealth, Congressman Cline supports an “all of the above” energy policy.  Therefore, Congressman Cline believes in supporting policies that serve to bolster both American security and economic interests, and also safeguard our natural resources in a responsible manner that does not jeopardize Virginia’s energy jobs or burdens Virginia’s families with high energy costs.

Below are just a few examples of pieces of legislation Congressman Cline has supported during his tenure to accomplish these goals:

117th Congress:

• H.R. 420, the Blocking Rejoining Paris Climate Accord Act prohibits the use of any funds to take action providing for the United States to become a party to the Paris Agreement.
• H.R. 684, the Keystone XL Construction and Jobs Act authorizes the TransCanada Keystone Pipeline to construct, connect, operate, and maintain the pipeline facilities in Phillips County, Montana, for the import of oil from Canada to the United States.
• H.R. 859, the Protecting American Energy Jobs Act limits the President's authority to prohibit or withdraw federal land or waters from energy production activities.
• H.R. 2705, the Natural Gas Export Expansion Act revises requirements regarding natural gas imports or exports to expand the expedited application and approval process to any nation, even if not a party to a free trade agreement with the United States. The bill excludes any nation subject to sanctions or trade restrictions imposed by the United States or excluded by the President or Congress for national security reasons.
• H.R. 6235, the Strategic Production Response Act provides for the development of a plan to increase oil and gas production under oil and gas leases of Federal lands under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Energy, the Secretary of the Interior, and the Secretary of Defense in conjunction with a drawdown of petroleum reserves from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

116th Congress:

• H.R. 3306, the Nuclear Energy Leadership Act directs the Secretary of Energy to establish advanced nuclear goals, provide for a versatile, reactor-based fast neutron source, make available high-assay, low-enriched uranium for research, development, and demonstration of advanced nuclear reactor concepts
• H.R. 4294, the American Energy First Act seeks to empower States to manage the development and production of oil and gas on available Federal land, to distribute revenues from oil and gas leasing on the Outer Continental Shelf to certain coastal States, to promote alternative energy development.

Fixing our Healthcare System

FIXING OUR HEALTHCARE SYSTEM

Virginia’s Sixth Congressional District is blessed to be the home of several of the top 10 hospitals in the Commonwealth of Virginia. From Carilion in Roanoke to Centra in Lynchburg, Virginia’s hospitals are vital to the health and well-being of Sixth District residents.

With the rise in premiums and deductibles and the ever-increasing cost of prescription drugs, Congressman Cline has made it a priority to address America’s healthcare issues using effective, free-market solutions, while protecting patients with preexisting conditions. He has also worked to advance legislation to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, which has had a devastating impact on the United States.

Congressman Cline believes it is a priority that Congress foster affordability and accessibility in the healthcare marketplace in a way that both parties can endorse and that is consistent with the entrepreneurial spirit of our nation.

Below are just a few examples of pieces of legislation Congressman Cline has supported during his tenure to accomplish these goals:

117th Congress:

• H.R. 725, the Personalized Care Act increases the maximum annual contribution limit for HSAs to $10,800 for individuals and $29,500 for families. The bill would also decouple HSAs from high-deductible health plans (HDHPs) and extend HSAs as an option for those enrolled in Medicare, Medicaid, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
• H.R. 2898, the Homecare for Seniors Act allows tax-exempt distributions from health savings accounts (HSAs) to be used for qualified home care.
• H.R. 3537, the Accelerating Access to Critical Therapies for ALS Act establishes grant programs to address neurodegenerative diseases, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease),
• H.R. 4390, the PROTECT 340B Act of 2021 amends title XXVII of the Public Health Service Act to ensure the equitable treatment of covered entities and pharmacies participating in the 340B drug discount program.
• H.R. 5981, the Telehealth Expansion Act amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to permanently extend the exemption for telehealth services from certain high deductible health plan rules.

116th Congress:

• H.R. 748, the CARES Act offers economic relief to individuals and businesses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and provides resources to hospitals and states to treat and test patients.
• H.R. 3199, the Terminating the Extension of Rights Misappropriated (TERM) Act is bipartisan legislation that helps limit the practice of “evergreening” by drug companies and will allow the quicker introduction of generic medications to market. With prices continuing to rise, Congress must ensure that the marketplace includes affordable and accessible generic prescription drugs.
• H.R. 5596, the Personalized Care Act expands access to Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), getting bureaucracy and insurance companies out of the way to allow patients to control their own healthcare choices.
• H.R. 1035, the Prescription Drug Price Transparency Act requires greater transparency and accountability from pharmacy benefit managers, allowing for lower prices for patients in the Sixth District and across the United States.
• H.R. 1398, the Health Insurance Tax Relief Act of 2019delays the Health Insurance Tax (HIT), a harmful sales tax on health insurance coverage, until after 2021.

Supporting Veterans

SUPPORTING VETERANS

As a Member of Congress, advocating for veterans and their families is a top priority for Congressman Cline. His district offices help veterans with their claims with the Department of Veterans affairs, and in Washington, he is always looking for new ways to do more to support those who supported us.

Throughout his tenure, Congressman Cline has strived to honor veterans by advocating for and passing legislation, some of which has been signed into law, that deals with burn pits, suicide prevention, veteran health care options, blue water navy, the widow’s tax, reserve and national guard bankruptcy, and opening up membership into the American Legion for previously disqualified veterans.

Below are just a few examples of pieces of legislation Congressman Cline has supported during his tenure to accomplish these goals:

117th Congress:

• H.R. 4433, the Veterans Entrepreneurship Act requires the Administrator of the SBA to carry out a pilot program issuing grants to eligible Veterans to start or acquire a qualifying business, giving Veterans greater flexibility with the money they earned.
• H.R. 1448, the PAWS for Veterans Therapy Act requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to implement a pilot program to provide canine training to Veterans diagnosed with PTSD as an element of an integrative health program.
• H.R. 2974, the Military Spouse Hiring Act expands the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) to include the hiring of a qualified military spouse.
• H.R. 3674, the Vet Center Support Act directs the VA Secretary to submit to Congress a report on mental health care furnished by the Department of Veterans Affairs in certain States to ensure our Veterans are being properly cared for.
• H.R. 2192, the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2021 ensures that applicable individuals who resided, worked, or were otherwise exposed to government-provided tap water that was contaminated with harmful chemicals, found at levels ranging from 240 to 3,400 times levels permitted by safety standards, at Camp Lejeune from August 1, 1953, to December 31, 1987, could obtain appropriate relief from harm.
• H.R. 1476, the PFC Joseph Dwyer Peer Support Program Act requires the VA to establish the PFC Joseph P. Dwyer Peer Support Program to make grants to eligible entities (including (1) a nonprofit organization that has historically served the mental health needs of Veterans, (2) a congressionally chartered Veteran service organization, or (3) a state, local, or tribal Veteran service agency, director, or commissioner) for peer-to-peer mental health programs for Veterans.

116th Congress:

• On July 30, 2019, I joined President Trump in the Oval Office as he signed my bill, H.R. 1641, the Let Everyone Get Involved in Opportunities for National Service (LEGION) Act. This bill expands American Legion membership criteria to include all honorably discharged veterans who served during unrecognized times of war.
• H.R. 299, the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Actextends benefits to servicemembers that served in the territorial waters off the coast of Vietnam and were exposed to Agent Orange. (signed into law)
• H.R. 553, the Military Surviving Spouses Equity Act eliminates an unfair deduction of benefits which is placed on surviving spouses of service members when their spouse passes away during active duty. 
• H.R. 1381, the Burn Pit Registry Enhancement Act authorizes specified individuals to update the burn pit registry with the cause of death of a registered individual. (passed in the House)
• H.R. 3495, the Improve Well-Being of Veterans Act requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to award grants for a period of three years to eligible entities for the provision of suicide prevention services to veterans and their families.