On the recordDecember 14, 2010
I thank the gentleman for his concern and his thoughtful statements. If the gentleman is so determined for a markup, there's one bill that the Republican leadership has told us they must have, and that's the tax bill. Yet there's been no markup on that tax bill or a hearing on that tax bill. And there have been hearings and discussions on this. I have testimony from numerous Republican Census Directors supporting it. Now, as the gentleman knows--and we changed the bill in response to the gentleman's concerns and others. We did have it as an independent agency with an independent IG. We folded it back into Commerce, at your suggestion and others. And, as you know, the Commerce Department has an IG. They have their own IG. And if the gentleman in the next Congress would like to sponsor an amendment to add another IG at Commerce that looks totally at the Census Bureau, then I would certainly support the gentleman. Now, the gentleman has written an op-ed which I found very interesting, and I appreciate your op-ed that appeared in Politico. You called for many things in this bill: transparency, independent voice, accountability. I repeat, because I know cost is an important factor now, this will cost no additional money to the taxpayer, not one additional cent.
