Stephanie Tubbs Jones: “I want to, so the world knows, speak in support of all of the work that the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Velazquez)…”

“I want to, so the world knows, speak in support of all of the work that the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Velazquez) has done on behalf of small business across this country. Without her leadership, small businesses might not have a voice in this Congress. I rise to speak in opposition to this resolution and, specifically, on the importance of tax relief for American small businesses. This bill specifies that small businesses have ``the right to be free of unnecessary, restrictive regulations and paperwork which waste the time and energy of small business, while hurting production and preventing job creation.'' My only question is, what have the Republicans done since they took the majority in 1994 to relieve the tax burden on small business? Over a decade ago, when Republicans took control of the House, they promised that they would make our tax laws more simple and fair. Former Committee on Ways and Means Chairman Bill Archer promised on many occasions that he was going to rip the code out by its roots and replace it with a simpler one. This has not happened. Actually, Mr. Speaker, the truth is no action has been taken. The Republicans have done the very opposite of what they promised. Here are some disturbing facts. The IRS estimates that the average taxpayer with self-employed status has the greatest compliance burden in terms of preparation: 59 hours. This is about 10 hours longer than in 1994.…”