Angie Craig: “I rise in support of S. 1429, the Taxpayer Refund Act of 1999. This debate has been about numbers and surpluses and…”

“I rise in support of S. 1429, the Taxpayer Refund Act of 1999. This debate has been about numbers and surpluses and budget rules. To some extent, it has to be. But our efforts to provide tax relief are also about something more important: People. The kind of relief that both the Senate and House tax bills would provide is a matter of providing real help to real people who have real needs. This tax relief is about returning some modest amount of liberty, some small measure of power, to the people. This is the most heavily taxed generation of Americans in history. Providing some degree of tax relief will return to individuals and families more power over their own lives, more ability to meet their pressing needs, and more of an opportunity to pursue their dreams. I've looked at both the Senate and House bills. I think we can come up with a very good conference report based on these two bills--a conference report that preserves the best of both bills, and helps improve the lives of all Americans. We are talking about a tax bill that removes some fundamental unfairness from the current system. For example, it just isn't fair that two individuals should be forced to pay hundreds of dollars more in taxes simply because they get married. That's why the Senate bill ends the marriage penalty for two earners. I think we should go farther, which is why I've supported the Gramm amendment and the Hutchison amendment and hope we can do more in conference.”