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United States Representative Bill Huizenga Thursday announced the introduction of a new bill that would support pay raises for essential workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.  It’s called the Patriot Bonus Tax Credit Act, and essentially, the way it would work is this: if an employer decides to give essential workers a raise, or a bonus, the federal government would match half of that amount through a refundable tax credit.

Congressman Bill Huizenga, who represents Michigan’s 2nd Congressional District, introduced the bill during a telephone town hall Thursday morning.

“It would be for those frontline workers who are either at a Meijer or a Speedway gas station, (or businesses like it,") Huizenga said. “Whether it’s an hourly wage increase or whether it’s a bonus. Well, what I would like to encourage that is give those companies a 50 percent  tax credit. So, if it’s a $2 an hour bump, the real cost is a dollar. If it’s a $120 a week patriot bonus, that costs that company $60,” Huizenga said.

“And I think it’s well deserved.”

The Patriot Bonus is the second piece of legislation that Rep. Huizenga has recently introduced that rewards essential workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Earlier this month, Huizenga also introduced the HEROES act, which would give first responders and health professionals who work on the frontlines in the war on the coronavirus, a 4-month federal income tax holiday as a way of saying ‘thank you’ for their service.

This article was originally published by WGVU on April 30th.