06.07.18

Tax Reform: ‘It Really Is Working’ For Ohio

Buckeye State Workers And Entrepreneurs Laud Expanding Businesses, New Hires, Employee Bonuses, And Larger Paychecks

 

SENATE MAJORITY LEADER MITCH McCONNELL (R-KY): “[O]ur economy is starting to work better for all kinds of communities. I recently heard a few inspiring stories from my friend Senator Portman. In Zanesville, Ohio, the owners of GKM Auto Parts had spent much of the last decade watching health insurance premiums soar.  By 2016, they could no longer support coverage for their employees. But as Senator Portman recently explained, one of the first things the company was able to do following the passage of historic tax reform last year was restore that coverage. He also shared that builders and manufacturers across his state, from Wolf Metals in Columbus to Advanced Industrial Roofing in Massillon, are increasing pay and benefits, investing in equipment, and creating jobs as a direct result of tax reform and this pro-growth economic climate. We’re hearing stories like these from every corner of America.” (Sen. McConnell, Remarks, 6/07/2018)

SEN. ROB PORTMAN (R-OH): “With the help of new pro-growth policies, the economy is growing and more and more businesses across the state are expanding their operations and putting ‘workers wanted’ signs in their windows. A lot of that optimism is from the tax cuts and better policies in the new tax reform law.... Since the first of the year, I’ve visited 16 businesses that have raised wages, delivered bonuses, invested in new equipment, expanded benefits, or a combination of those things as a direct result of tax reform.” (Sen. Portman, Op-Ed, “Connecting Ohioans To Good-Paying Jobs,” [Napoleon, OH] Northwest Signal, 5/22/2018)

 

Ohioans: ‘Because Of These Tax Cuts, We’re Now Saving Over $1,400 A Year,’ ‘I Used That Bonus To Start A College Savings Account For My Son’

KEVIN THORNTON, Hubbard, Ohio: “I’ve been a lifelong resident of Hubbard — a small city just northeast of Youngstown.  And in 2000, I started working for what would be known as RG Steel, and stayed there until its closing in June of 2012…. But thankfully, thankfully, in January of 2014, I found employment with the current company I’m working with.  And it’s a great company too, with great people, and room for us to expand and grow…. The company I’m employed with has been seeing huge amounts of demand for their product.  They have — this tax cut that we are having is enabling them to purchase new machinery, open up buildings they previously had closed, and to hire more people. And I didn’t think that I would ever be able to say this in my life, but I think I can now — at this rate, I think I’ll be able to be gainfully employed until my retirement.” (Roundtable Discussion on Tax Reform, Cleveland, OH, 5/06/2018)

SHARLENE THORNTON, Hubbard, Ohio: “My husband Kevin was — he worked in a steel mill, and it closed down in 2012, due to the company going bankrupt…. Finally, he found a job January of 2014.  He’s still with them.  But because of the tax cut and the job plan, they’re taking out a lot less taxes than what they had been prior to before…. We have actually seen, in several checks, two to three hundred dollars less taxes than what they did before the plan. And those are real numbers. I actually went back and looked at his income and the taxes before and after, and I was amazed. So it really is working.” (Roundtable Discussion on Tax Reform, Cleveland, OH, 5/06/2018)

CHRIS JARAMILLO, New Franklin, Ohio: “My name is Chris Jaramillo.  I’m from New Franklin, Ohio.  I was born and raised in Texas.  When I was 19, I enlisted in the Marine Corps…. After four years of active duty service, I moved to Ohio with my wife, and we decided to settle down and start a family. I’ve been here for eight years now, and we have two daughters … And with the rest of my family still in Texas, we only get to visit them every other year or so.  So because of these tax cuts, we’re now saving over $1,400 a year, which gives me the opportunity to take my family here in Ohio down to Texas to visit my family down there.  Family is very important to me and my wife, and it just means a lot to us that we are now able to do that on a more frequent basis.” (Roundtable Discussion on Tax Reform, Cleveland, OH, 5/06/2018)

KATE JARAMILLO, New Franklin, Ohio: “Like my husband said, we’re saving over $1,400 a year because of this tax cut. And not only does that give us the opportunity to go visit family in Texas that we don’t get to see often, my husband and I actually made, kind of, a deal with each other when we decided we were actually going to settle down in Ohio … We were going to hold off on buying a house until we had our debt paid off.  You know, we wanted to get the student loans and the car loans, and just all the little debt that catches up with you in adulthood that we wanted to pay off before we bought a house. So not only is that giving us the opportunity to stay closer to our out-of-state family, that puts us that much closer to our goal of actually buying our house and settling down permanently in Ohio.” (Roundtable Discussion on Tax Reform, Cleveland, OH, 5/06/2018)

BRETT LANCY: “I have a positive story to share about the tax cuts, and it centers around my son, Grayson, who is one year old.  It was the proudest, happiest day of my life. Due to the tax cuts, our company was able to give out a very generous $500 bonus to myself and other employees.  I used that bonus to start a college savings account for my son that I would not have been able to do at that time without the bonus. Also, due to the extra take-home pay in my paycheck — it’s about $125 a month — we’ve been able to move him into one of the better daycares in our area. And it’s just fabulous.” (Roundtable Discussion on Tax Reform, Cleveland, OH, 5/06/2018)

 

Ohio Small Businesses: ‘We Are Taking The Money This Is Creating For Us And We Are Reinvesting It Into The Company, Into Our People,’ ‘We Awarded All Of Our Fulltime Employees A $1,000 Bonus’

SHEELY’S FURNITURE, North Lima, Ohio: “Over 140 employees for a local furniture store will feel their wallets get a lot bigger. Sheely’s Furniture and Appliance President and CEO, Dale Sheely Jr. announced the bonuses Tuesday morning. The cause — tax reform, a growing retail footprint, and creating a better working environment for employees. The bonuses will be given throughout the first quarter of 2018. Full-time employees will receive $1,000 in cash and part-time employees will get $500. ... The store is located in North Lima [Ohio].” (“Sheely’s Sees Benefit Of Tax Reform, Offers Cash Bonuses,” WYTV Youngstown, OH, 2/20/2018)

  • SHERRY SHEELY, Sheely’s Furniture COO: “And then we were more excited when your tax cut bill passed in December.  And at that time, Dale and I wanted to reward all of our employees.  We decided to wait a few months so it would be a surprise.  So in March of this year, we awarded all of our fulltime employees a $1,000 bonus … And we gave all of our part-time employees a $500 bonus…. And I must say, Mr. President, they were so excited.  It was totally unexpected.  We had several employees who got so emotional, they cried.” (Roundtable Discussion on Tax Reform, Cleveland, OH, 5/06/2018)
  • SHERRY SHEELY: “Just Thursday, one of our delivery drivers came into my office and said, ‘Sherry, I have to tell you.  I thank you again for my $1,000 bonus.  I was going to use it to do repairs this summer, but I chose to do something different.’  And he said, ‘I just put a $1,000 down payment on a vacation I’m taking my family on this summer.’” (Roundtable Discussion on Tax Reform, Cleveland, OH, 5/06/2018)

TONY TRISCARI, Ohio Industrial Sales, Twinsburg, Ohio: “My name is Tony Triscari, and I’m the owner of Ohio Industrial Sales.  We’re a small company located in Twinsburg, Ohio … I started this company in my basement in 1978.  And in July of this year, we will celebrate 40 years being in business…. Our company employs 13 people, 14 if you include me … When I received the news about the tax cut, I contacted our accountant to find out how it impacted our company.  And I was thrilled to find out that we would receive over a 20 percent tax reduction in our final bottom line.” (Roundtable Discussion on Tax Reform, Cleveland, OH, 5/06/2018)

  • TONY TRISCARI: “With that information, along with the savings that our employees got on their paycheck, I decided to give everybody in the company a $500 bonus.  And I know it’s not the $1,000 that a lot of the other people are getting, but you can let Nancy Pelosi know that my people appreciate the crumbs that they receive. The additional money that we’re receiving from the tax benefits are going to be used to buy some new equipment and to hire some additional employees.” (Roundtable Discussion on Tax Reform, Cleveland, OH, 5/06/2018)

ADVANCED INDUSTRIAL ROOFING, Massillon, Ohio: “Fred Horner and his partner, Jeff Rupert, began their roofing business in 1988 out of Horner’s Jackson Township home…. Thirty years later, Advanced Industrial Roofing Inc. has moved to the city, employs nearly 100 people, has grown its customer base and is about to embark on a $250,000 expansion that will bring with it 20 new jobs….” (“Massillon Roofing Business Expanding, Adding Jobs,” The [Canton, OH] Repository, 5/22/2018)

  • “The company will break ground on a new facility early next month…. Plans are being finalized for the new facility that will house the architectural sheet metal division. A machine will be installed to manufacture panels as well as computerized break and shear machines, which will bend and cut pieces. Horner expects to add 20 manufacturing and installation jobs by 2020…. The tax reform bill has been a large factor in the expansion, Horner explained. ‘It’s bringing a lot of work here,’ he explained. ‘Part of the bill is a million dollar write-off. It’s just developing so much work out there for people. With that we are hiring more people. We are taking the money this is creating for us and we are reinvesting it into the company, into our people. I am a firm believer that you need to reinvest in the company and the people. It is one reason we have grown what we’ve done.’” (“Massillon Roofing Business Expanding, Adding Jobs,” The [Canton, OH] Repository, 5/22/2018)

 

More Ohio Companies Are Hiring And Expanding, Benefitting From Tax Reform

JTM FOOD GROUP, Harrison, Ohio: “Dividends, bonuses and salary bumps for lower-wage workers are among the more tangible results announced so far from the tax-reform act signed by President Donald Trump in December. To that list JTM Food Group is adding 30 new kinds of macaroni and cheese. ‘How do you like that?’ said JTM President Tony Maas. ‘We’re doing a Mac over.’ Maas celebrated the grand opening Monday of a $26.1 million expansion of its Harrison food-processing plant, which racked up $170 million in revenue last year from retailers, schools, corporate and military clients. Maas said the plant will create up to 100 new jobs and nearly double JTM’s manufacturing capacity to 185 million pounds of kettle-cooked food. But it will also deliver more packaging flexibility so JTM can quickly bring new product ideas to market, starting with mac and cheese…. [I]t will benefit from friendlier rules on depreciation of new equipment and lower tax rates that enable new hiring and higher wages.” (“JTM Food Group Opens $26 Million Expansion In Harrison,” WCPO-TV, 5/08/2018)

  • “Maas told WCPO in January 2017 that state, local and federal taxes consumed more than half of company profits at JTM, a family-owned company with a corporate structure that passes through corporate income to individual owners. Maas estimated tax reform will reduce the total tax liability of the family enterprise by 5 to 7 percent. Maas said starting wages at JTM will rise beyond their current level of $13 to $20 per hour … And he expects it will be easier to embark on future expansions, perhaps as early as 2019.” (“JTM Food Group Opens $26 Million Expansion In Harrison,” WCPO-TV, 5/08/2018)

KROGER CO., Cincinnati, Ohio: “Kroger Co. is hiring 11,000 workers to improve customer service and efficiency at its thousands of stores as competition among food retailers heats up. Kroger said the new positions at its nearly 2,800 supermarkets will include 2,000 managers and represent a 2% increase to its workforce of about 450,000 full- and part-time employees…. Midwestern states including Ohio, Indiana and Michigan are among those with the most Kroger stores.” (“Now Hiring in Aisle 3: Kroger Looks to Add 11,000 Supermarket Workers,” The Wall Street Journal, 4/10/2018)

  • “Officials of Cincinnati-based Kroger Co. said tax cuts have enabled the company to increase tuition assistance for employees along with other benefits ranging from higher company contributions to their retirement plans to expanded employee discounts. ‘This is what we were thinking about when we passed tax reform,’ [House Speaker Paul] Ryan told workers at Kroger’s Springdale ice cream and beverage plant, referring to the increased benefits.” (“House Speaker Ryan, GOP Rep. Chabot Tout Tax Overhaul In Ohio,” The Associated Press, 6/01/2018)

 

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SENATE REPUBLICAN COMMUNICATIONS CENTER

Related Issues: Small Business, Middle Class, Tax Reform, Taxes, Economy