Congressman Steven Horsford Describes Economic and Jobs Outlook for Nevada

Washington, D.C. — Congressman Steven Horsford (NV-04) today spoke in the House Budget Committee hearing on The Congressional Budget Office's Budget and Economic Outlook to describe the fiscal outlook for Nevada over the next time years, describing the vast reach of income inequality and need for more federal investment in the workforce.

"The jobs report may say unemployment is down, but the truth is that our economy is simply not working well for tens of millions of people who are working full-time year-round and still not making enough to live comfortably," Congressman Horsford said, citing an article entitled "Low unemployment isn't worth much if the jobs barely pay," from the Brookings Institution. "We must keep asking ourselves: What should our investments be, what kind of jobs are we generating, and do they pay enough to live?"

Per Brookings, 53 million workers — 44 percent of the entire workforce of our country — earn barely enough to live with a median annual income of $18,000.

"Federal Reserve Chair Powell cited income inequality as the biggest economic challenge facing the United States in next 10 years," Congressman Horsford also said. "We know that the Trump tax plan worsened income inequality according to the joint committee on taxation's distributional analysis."

The hearing also described the findings of the CBO's Budget and Economic Outlook for fiscal years 2020 to 2030, with deficits set to remain at historically high levels throughout the next decade. The deficit in 2019 was at its highest level since 2012 when unemployment was more than double the rate today. But rather than use debt for far more productive uses—to repair our infrastructure, ensure high-quality childcare, or reduce health care costs—Trump instead gave a $1.9 trillion tax giveaway to big corporations and the wealthy.

The full video of the Congressman's remarks can be found here.