Congressman John Rutherford

I joined the Southside Business Men’s Club to talk about the great work that House Republicans are getting done for working-class families and American businesses. The Working Families Tax Cuts Act, which I voted for in Congress and President Trump signed into law, has delivered the largest tax cut for working-class Americans, including an estimated tax cut of $7,018 in St. Johns County for 2026.

This law prevented an average $1,700 tax increase, increased take-home pay and real wages by as much as $7,200 per worker, and protected and created up to 7.2 million jobs, including 1.4 million new manufacturing positions. It supercharged the U.S. economy by providing businesses with greater certainty to invest, hire, and grow. I am proud of this legislation and remain committed to helping our area’s businesses thrive.

It was great to visit the brand-new PGA TOUR Global Home and Studios in Ponte Vedra. I was honored to tour their state-of-the-art broadcasting facility and meet with their incredible team. The Global Home will serve as the operational heart of the PGA TOUR, anchoring the organization to Northeast Florida. Their commitment to Florida and the Ponte Vedra community is amazing and I am excited to see what comes next.

This Purple Heart Day, we recognize the brave servicemen and women wounded or killed serving our country. May their sacrifices never be forgotten. 🇺🇸

I was proud to receive the National Retail Federation Hero of Main Street Award for my continued support of retailers nationwide and in Northeast Florida. It’s important we help protect Main Street America from organized retail crime and burdensome regulations because when our retailers thrive, so does Florida’s economy.

I voted to prevent an unnecessary and manufactured government shutdown. This legislation protects our national security, preserves critical services, and removes the option for any radicals to manufacture a shutdown for political leverage. We will not let government funding be a pawn in any political games.

There are no poison pills, no political gimmicks, and no partisan riders in this bill. It is a clean, straightforward stopgap that simply extends funding necessary to prevent a shutdown at the end of September. House Republicans are delivering certainty, protecting progress, and paving a responsible path forward for our nation.

I hope to see all 12 full-year House Appropriations bills, that passed out of the Appropriations Committee, get signed into law for 2027. It’s critical we fully fund our government through the appropriations process to prevent funding uncertainty in the future.

It’s important we provide our servicemen and women with the resources they need to defend against any threat that faces our nation.

That’s why I was proud to vote YES on the 2027 Defense Bill to improve our servicemembers’ quality of life, invest in our defense industrial base, continue to refocus our military on war fighting, and advance President Trump’s peace through strength agenda.

This bill secures a 5-7% pay raise and expands access to affordable housing and childcare, putting our servicemembers and their families first. It helps restore our stockpiles, prohibits woke policies, cuts waste, fraud, and abuse, and ensures our troops have what they need to defend our nation.

On this day in 1950, the first ever rocket launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida. What a great day in Florida's history, here's to many more!

I was proud to vote YES on the Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act on the House floor this week to safeguard the constitutional rights and privacy of law-abiding gun owners by prohibiting payment processors and financial institutions from using discriminatory merchant category codes (MCCs) to track firearm and ammunition purchases.

It is our Second Amendment right to bear arms and the creation of a separate merchant category code for firearm retailers enables the creation of an unconstitutional backdoor gun registry and discrimination against Americans who own and purchase guns.

Yet again, House Republicans have delivered another critical piece of legislation to reduce spending, combat trafficking of illicit narcotics, counter our anti-American adversaries, support U.S. interest worldwide, strengthen our alliances, and ensure full accountability and transparency of international organizations receiving U.S. tax dollars.

This bill invests wisely in our nation’s best interests, advancing American values and strengthening America’s future.

I was proud to meet with the University of Florida’s Child Protection Team (CPT) to talk about the importance of helping ensure victims and their families have access to medical care, counseling, and social work experts in the aftermath of a crime. That’s why I am proud to cosponsor the Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act to help victims cover direct, out-of-pocket expenses and provide grants for local organizations, shelters, and crisis centers that provide direct services to them.