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President Biden sign the tax c...US President Joe Biden has signed a $700bn bill to fight healthcare costs and climate change while raising taxes mainly on the rich.
The act includes measures to make good on decades of congressional promises to curb the price of prescription drugs. The final version is more modest than the $3.5tn package first envisaged by Democrats. A flagship of Mr. Biden's plan, the bill could provide a boost ahead of the mid-term elections.
The package invests $375bn to fight climate change. It is projected to lower US emissions by up to 44% by 2030. The deal also allows the government to negotiate lower prices for prescription medicines provided under its Medicare health insurance program for those over 65. The bill sets a minimum 15% tax for corporations, and Democrats have pledged it will entail no tax hikes for those with incomes below $400,000 a year. But an analysis of the legislation by the Congressional Budget Office said Americans earning less than $400,000 a year would end up paying an additional $20bn in taxes. The bill includes about $46bn for the Internal Revenue Service to hire tens of thousands more tax agents.
Voters will cast their ballots in November and decide whether Mr. Biden's Democrats retain control of Congress for two more years. The president hailed the bill as he signed it on Tuesday as the "final piece" of his domestic agenda.