WALLY HERGER

today's economic debate should focus on big picture tax policies that emphasize sustained prosperity for American workers and their families. A one-time, consumption-driven stimulus may be popular, but what we really need is tax relief…

an important provision of the HEART Act would help veterans in my home State achieve the American Dream of homeownership. In our pursuit of this provision, I join with my California colleague, Susan Davis, to introduce a stand-alone…

this bill is the wrong policy for tax-paying families. PAYGO budgeting has put Congress in a straitjacket even on this temporary fix to the alternative minimum tax which was never intended to ensnare 23 million middle-income workers. In…

I rise in support of this extension of the Trade Adjustment Assistance, or TAA program, for 3 months beyond its expiration of December 31. The TAA program provides important training, health care, and other benefits to American workers…

when our constituents tell us to ``do something'' about gas prices, they don't mean ``Make them higher.'' This bill has some attractive elements, but they're overwhelmingly weighed down by bad policy, creative accounting and tax increases…

Congress needs to keep the alternative minimum tax from reaching out and ensnaring an additional 19 million new taxpayers, saddling them with an additional $2,000 tax bill. I have long voted to limit the reach of the AMT. In my Northern…

That tax increase could go as high as $3,800, and talking about average families.

losing a job is one of the most disruptive events that can occur to a worker and a family. We should be helping these individuals to get back to work as soon as possible. That's why I support the trade adjustment assistance and why I…

all of us support SCHIP and we all want to reauthorize it, but we need to put low-income kids first. This bill would expand the program to families making more than $60,000 a year. That is not low income. It is a majority of the households…

I support H.R. 3375, a bill to extend the Trade Adjustment Assistance program by three months beyond September 30th, when it would otherwise expire. I introduced this bill to allow Members adequate time to review and carefully consider the…

Every time I visit with constituents, like most of you here in Congress, I hear about high gas prices. And they're right. Gas prices are too high. Prices in our free market are governed by supply and demand. Record high prices result from…

I rise in support of H.R. 957. On May 23, 2007, the International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, reported that Iran is continuing to enrich uranium in blatant defiance of three U.N. resolutions. The IAEA also concluded that Iran could develop…

I support this short-term extension of the Andean preferences. U.S. trade preferences for Colombia, Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia have furthered important economic development and political purposes, including creating incentives that shift…

Mr. Chairman, over the past several years, we have seen the rise of a very disturbing trend on Federal lands: the creation of a billion-dollar international drug trafficking ring. Organized criminal gangs, headquartered in Mexico, have…

I thank the chairman and greatly appreciate his efforts and the efforts of Ranking Member Tiahrt to improve public safety on Federal recreation lands. Is it the committee's intention in granting this increase to ensure that these funds…

I have come today not to criticize any of the choices they have made but, rather, to offer what I believe, Mr. Chairman, is a very straightforward and relatively simple amendment.

Again I thank the chairman for that clarification. Further, while I believe it would be inappropriate for those of us in Congress to micromanage the efforts of law enforcement as they work to dismantle these illegal drug networks by…

I recently served on the Budget Committee for 8 years, during which time we had the only four balanced budgets in recent history. I am sad to see, however, that today's budget envisions what could amount to the largest tax increase in…

In 2001 President Bush and Congress worked to enact the most important tax relief since Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. For individuals and families, we reduced marginal tax rates on personal income, doubled the child tax credit, reduced the…

I hope we all can recognize the profound importance of our mission in Iraq. History surely will. The mission in Iraq will impact our national security for decades to come. The United States seeks a region of stability and peace to create a…

I am pleased we're discussing the growing problem of America's dependence on foreign sources of oil and gas, and the high prices that consumers are paying here at home. In the 109th Congress we made great strides in promoting energy…

Economic growth through increased trade and investment is one of our most effective tools in our arsenal for fighting poverty around the world. It also creates opportunity at home by opening foreign markets to U.S. agriculture, goods and…

in 2003, President Bush called for the creation of a Middle East Free Trade Area in 10 years to bring the Middle East into an expanding circle of opportunity. To date the administration has successfully negotiated free trade agreements…

if gasoline prices are bad, natural gas prices are even worse. The price of this fuel has tripled over the last six years. This dramatic increase is hurting my constituents in Northern California who rely on natural gas for heating and…

all across America following the death of a loved one, people of modest means are all too often faced with the grim prospect of selling a family farm or small business just to pay the taxes that come due. Such was the case in my own family…