Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott (R-SC) told Breitbart News in an exclusive interview that President Donald Trump and Republicans are working around the clock to lower costs for Americans, while Democrats are “trying to put coal in America’s stockings” by blocking efforts to advance pro-growth policies.
“I’ll say that 2026, is the year of affordability. I’m thankful that President Trump’s in the White House, because that’s why we’re going to have a very successful year in 2026,” Scott told Breitbart News in an interview.
The South Carolina senator laid out Republicans’ leadership plans for affordability and lowering costs.
Scott emphasized that most of the benefit of the Big Beautiful Bill will start next year, which includes:
- No tax on tips
- No tax on overtime pay
- $6,000 Deduction for Social Security benefits
- Boosted child tax credit for parents
- Tax-advantaged Trump Accounts will be established for newborns, with a $1,000 starting balance for children born between 2025 and 2028
Scott lauded the benefits of the GENIUS Act, which established a light-regulatory touch for stablecoins, which transfer fiat currencies much faster than a traditional, bank-based ACH transfer.
Scott helped lead the Financial Integrity and Regulation Management (FIRM) Act out of the Senate Banking Committee, which would remove reputational risk as a measure to determine financial risk in the banking sector. Reputation risk has been cited as a key factor involved in “debanking.”
In the committee’s first bipartisan housing markup in a decade, Chairman Scott helped unanimously advance the Renewing Opportunity in the American Dream (ROAD) to Housing Act of 2025, which would expand housing. The bill was later included in the Senate-passed National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
He said, “It helps us get there by doing a couple things. Number one, it reduces the cost of closing by cutting through the red tape and making it less oppressive to go through the process of becoming a homeowner. Number two, I believe it will increase housing supply by using our cares and sticks approach that’s in the bill that rewards local jurisdictions for increasing their housing supply, and frankly, it reduces funding to those jurisdictions that won’t comply.”
Scott continued, “And then we also look at things like making it easier for modular homes to become a reality across the country. We are going to make sure that President Trump’s agenda of reducing the age of a first time home buyer becomes a reality in 2026, and this legislation gets us there.”
He chided Democrats for holding up legislation that would establish a clear regulatory framework for the crypto industry.
“I’m not sure if the Democrats are trying to put coal in America’s stockings, but it feels like they are, because they keep dragging their feet on something that’s just clearly the time has come, and it is now to get the market structure done,” he remarked.
Looking to next year, Scott teased that they will focus on debanking and artificial intelligence.
“We’re going to make sure that we are focusing on putting the American people’s priorities first, and that means anyone who wants to open [an] account that’s account-worthy, they get a bank account. And, making sure that we understand the future of our economy, looking at technology and working our way back to today is going to be really important for our key agenda,” he concluded.
Read the full article here