Tester Discusses Agriculture, Benefits Of IRA
U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, D.Mont., noted that the state’s agriculture industry is experiencing mixed results as harvest ends for most of Montana’s crops.
The Democrat said ag prices are decent and the quality is good, but production was down for many growers.
“It’s easily solved with good old-fashioned rain,” Tester said.
During the conference call with Montana’s media members on Thursday, Sept. 22, Tester mentioned the importance of Native American Week.
“Native Americans are a very proud people and have contributed greatly to where we are today,” Tester said.
He added that he’s been working on housing proposals to help bring more professionals to reservations. He said he’s heard about concerns regarding the Bureau of Indian Affairs and he was planning to talk with the deputy secretary to improve law enforcement.
Tester said the Inflation Reduction Act was the most significant legislation passed to come out of Congress in a decade.
“This legislation cuts our national debt by hundreds of billions of dollars. It saves Montana seniors thousands of dollars of yearly out-ofpocket prescription drug costs. And it’s fully paid for by closing tax loopholes for the biggest corporations in America — not working Montanans,” Tester said. “In fact, no individual will see new taxes because of this law. That’s because Montanans sent me to Congress to fight for them — not multinational corporations.”
Tester says benefits of the IRA include: * By requiring Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices, the law will save Montana seniors thousands in out-of-pocket costs, which will ultimately lower costs for folks across the board.
* By capping insulin costs for Medicare patients at $35 a month, residents will no longer be forced to choose between lifesaving medications or putting food on the table.
* And by capping out of pocket prescription drug costs at $2,000 a year for Medicare patients, people living on fixed income will finally have the certainty and flexibility needed to comfortably plan for the future.
