The National Republican Congressional Committee has launched an advertising campaign targeting Democratic U.S. Reps. Marcy Kaptur and Emilia Strong Sykes for voting against the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
The U.S. House passed the measure, which extends parts of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, by a 215-214-1 vote, mainly along party lines, on May 22. The Senate is likely to amend the measure as it considers it.
The NRCC said the vote has implications for Ohio congressional districts, including the 9th and 13th districts.
Meanwhile, according to the NRCC, the 13th Congressional District has 492,550 taxpayers, and Sykes’ vote represents a 26% tax increase on her constituents. For a family of four earning the median income, their taxes will increase by $1,302, roughly seven weeks’ worth of groceries.
“Unfortunately, this bill will bankrupt people all over the country in more ways than one,” Cleveland.com quoted Sykes telling the House Rules Committee before the bill’s passage.
According to NRCC numbers, Ohio’s Ninth Congressional District has 397,570 taxpayers, and Kaptur’s vote represents a 25% tax increase on her constituents. For a family of four earning the median income, their taxes will increase by $1,178, which is roughly equivalent to six weeks of groceries.
“Out of touch Democrats Marcy Kaptur and Emilia Sykes just voted to slam Ohioans with a tax hike,” NRCC spokesman Zach Bannon said in a statement. “After four years of crushing inflation under Joe Biden, Kaptur and Sykes are doubling down, pushing their radical agenda that drives up costs for working families and punishes Ohio small businesses. This is a betrayal Ohioans won’t forget.”
The NRCC also called out Kaptur and Sykes for opposing tax cuts for overtime and tipped workers, seniors, and families.
However, Democrats weren’t the only ones who voted against the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. U.S. Rep. Warren Davidson was one of two Republicans who joined Democrats in opposing the measure.
“While I love many things in the bill, promising someone else will cut spending in the future does not cut spending,” Cleveland.com quoted Davidson as writing on social media. “Deficits do matter, and this bill grows them now. The only Congress we can control is the one we’re in. Consequently, I cannot support this big deficit plan. NO.”
Republican U.S. Rep. Bob Latta said he was proud to vote for the measure, which he said “will help the United States get back on track.”
“House Republicans will continue to stay unified and deliver on the promises made to the American people,” Latta said in a statement.
The “vote takes us one step closer to strengthening Medicaid, prioritizing American energy dominance, [keeping] Americans’ tax rates lower, cutting wasteful spending, and reducing fraud and abuse in the Federal government through the reconciliation process,” Latta added. “I urge my Senate colleagues to act quickly to get this bill across the finish line.”
The bill’s passage has also permeated the conversation at the state level.
At the state level, Ohio Senate Republicans seized on the vote to send out a poll asking if they should “take it a step further” and asked Ohioans to weigh in.
Should overtime, tips, and social security be exempt from all taxes: Federal, State, and Local?” they asked in an email.
An earlier poll found “46% of you said property tax reform was the most important issue to you as an Ohio taxpayer,” they said. “That was followed by 33% who said funding for schools and libraries, and 20% said getting to a single tax bracket.”
