Jeff Miller: “I rise today as an opponent of corporate welfare and in support of this amendment to eliminate funding for the Advanced…”

“I rise today as an opponent of corporate welfare and in support of this amendment to eliminate funding for the Advanced Technology Program. Since I have been in Congress, I have worked diligently to eliminate Federal subsidies to corporations that do not need them. I took on, for example, the sugar daddy of corporate welfare, the sugar program, which because of the way the program operates, it cost the American consumer $1.4 billion, but 42 percent of the benefits of this corporate welfare program go to only 1 percent of the sugar plantations. That is corporate welfare. And so is the Advanced Technology Program. I have cosponsored several amendments this year to eliminate subsidies, and the ATP program is one of the most egregious examples of corporate welfare we have today. I am glad to be able to continue to support this effort. This program subsidizes big multinational companies. It gives hard-earned taxpayer dollars to companies such as AT&T, Shell Petroleum, DuPont and IBM for them to conduct research on risky ventures. If these companies want to engage in risky ventures, they should be required to find private funding. Supporters of the ATP program claim that it is essential for research and development. Yet in 1993 the GAO estimated research and development spending nationwide to be approximately $150 billion. The ATP program at $185 million represents a mere, if not unnecessary, drop in the bucket. Private funding for these ventures is available.”