Press releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) sent a letter today to the Republican members of the conference committee that is working on delivering robust tax reform to American families and businesses.  Sen. Kennedy highlighted the importance of three key amendments to teachers, parents, grandparents, the energy industry and coastal communities in Louisiana.

“Congress has made tremendous progress toward delivering meaningful tax cuts to middle-class families and small businesses.  Our conferees are working on smoothing out the differences in order to put a final bill on the President’s desk by Christmas,” said Sen. Kennedy.  “All I ask is that the conferees preserve amendments important to our teachers, our kids and our coastal communities.  Louisiana needs tax cuts, and we also need to educate our kids and stop our coastline from disappearing.”

The full text of the letter is below.  Sen. Kennedy highlighted:

Supporting schoolteachers: The Educator Expense Deduction allows teachers to claim a $500 deduction for money they spend out of pocket on their classrooms.  This is a modest tax deduction that helps teachers who selflessly spend their own money on school supplies.

Creating flexibility for families: An amendment was introduced that creates much-needed flexibility for families who save money for their children’s education through 529 educational savings accounts.  Traditionally, this money could only be used for college tuition.  The amendment gives families more freedom by allowing the savings to be used for primary or secondary school expenses, ensuring that kindergarten all the way through college is covered.

Increasing coastal restoration funding: Louisiana is critical to the nation’s energy industry and reducing the reliance on foreign oil.  Our state is home to a fifth of the nation’s refining capacity and is a major contributor to natural gas production.  Unfortunately, we’re losing our coast at an alarming rate.  A bill passed by the Senate would increase Louisiana’s share of offshore revenue in order to address this growing problem.  We have to sustain our infrastructure, coastal communities and wetlands in order to continue to be an energy powerhouse. 

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