John Shimkus: “I rise today to recall a tax imposed on our colonial forefathers by the British monarchy in the days before the birth of…”

“I rise today to recall a tax imposed on our colonial forefathers by the British monarchy in the days before the birth of our Nation. Like the British monarchy, the United States Postal Service has imposed a Stamp Tax upon the American people. Despite recording a net operating surplus of more than $4.5 billion over the past 3 years and a surplus of over $1.3 billion already in 1998, the Postal Rate Commission has approved a 1 cent increase in the price of a stamp. Mr. Speaker, I do not understand how the Postal Service can justify this tax increase on the working families of America, as the agency itself runs a record billion-dollar profit. Our colonial forefathers would be ashamed of the Postal Service that is now imposing this unnecessary tax on its people.”