President Joe Biden on Tuesday signed into law a major spending plan focused on combating inflation, reducing drug prices and tackling climate change, which includes provisions for a 15% corporate minimum tax as well as a 1% tax on stock buybacks.
"We're cutting (the) deficit to fight inflation, by having the wealthy and big corporations finally begin to pay part of their fair share," Mr. Biden said in a speech on Tuesday.
The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 passed the House in a 220-207 vote along party lines on Aug. 12. This followed the Senate's passage of the bill on Aug. 7, when Vice President Kamala Harris broke the tie in a 50-50 vote.
For corporations that make more than $1 billion in annual profits, the law will require them to pay at least 15% in taxes, a move that is projected to raise $222 billion over the next decade, according to an estimate from the Joint Committee on Taxation. The committee estimates the 1% tax on stock buybacks will raise $74 billion in that same time period.
The legislation also invests $369 billion toward reducing climate change, which the White House says will help lower energy costs and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 1 gigaton in 2030.
