Erik Paulsen: “I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I also rise in favor of H.R. 674, a bill that will repeal this…”

“I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I also rise in favor of H.R. 674, a bill that will repeal this ill-conceived 3 percent withholding rule for all government contractors, including private hospitals that accept Medicare or Medicaid payments and those who provide even lunches for schools. This is one area in which Republicans and Democrats are working together, as even President Obama singled out this provision as burdensome to our Nation's job creators. The President, in his jobs plan, he proposed delaying this rule. The very fact that this rule continues to be delayed and has not been implemented since being first created in 2005 just tells you how bad of an idea it truly is. But we shouldn't just delay it; we should eliminate it and repeal it immediately. I've spoken with many small businesses in my district that will be negatively impacted by this law because the profit margin for many of these companies that have government contracts is right around 3 percent. One Minnesota company, Valley Paving, says that withholding 3 percent, the new 3 percent withholding law would be catastrophic on their balance sheet, meaning that covering costs, paying bills, and just covering operating costs would be a challenge. And as they point out, during these hard economic times, withholding more money from our small businesses like themselves would be that they most likely would not be able to update their equipment, not grow as fast, and not be able to hire more people. Mr.…”