Kevin Roberts: “I would like to amplify the remarks made recently by my colleague from Utah Senator Hatch, our distinguished ranking…”

“I would like to amplify the remarks made recently by my colleague from Utah Senator Hatch, our distinguished ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, concerning the year-end tax legislation--what is called the tax extenders bill. Senator Hatch was entirely correct, it seems to me, when he said that getting this legislation through the Senate had been an ordeal, an unnecessary ordeal not only for the Senate but more particularly for every person in business back home in my State of Kansas and also throughout the country--Utah, Kansas, wherever in the United States. I am talking about farmers, ranchers, small business owners, manufacturers and all of their employees; in other words, the backbone of our economy. It is a real shame that the longer term extenders deal developed by the chairmen of the tax committees and the leaders in the House and Senate--yes, you heard me right, both chairmen in the House and Senate and both leaders--have agreed that basically this deal that was reached before the Thanksgiving holiday has collapsed. The deal included a number of very critical items, including a permanent simplification of the research credit that would help businesses plan and invest in job-creating innovation. The package also included a number of provisions for which I had worked very hard, including special depreciation and expensing rules that are very important to agriculture and small business.…”