Political Quotes

“briefly, I rise as a member of the Committee on Ways and Means and as the former principal tax staffer for the Senate Republicans in Pennsylvania in strong opposition to this amendment. We have to realize that these revenue estimates that are done by the Joint Committee on Taxation are critical to our policymaking and critical for the minority and the majority. There have been 2,000 revenue requests per year heaped on the Joint Committee, and so far they only have the staff resources to process about 50 percent of them. In the last 2 years, we have asked the Joint Committee to assume additional responsibilities in connection with the Line Item Veto Act and unfunded mandates legislation. We adopted a new House rule that requires the Joint Committee on Taxation to analyze the macroeconomic effects of such proposed legislation, and we have added additional responsibilities. The lack of revenue estimates stifles tax policy, it reduces input from rank and file Members. Because, let us face it, members of the tax committee have, in all probability, easier access to revenue estimates from the Joint Committee. Also, I think it is fair to say that this gives the minority a better shot at getting revenue estimates. Let us understand that revenue estimates are important and that a vote for this amendment by reducing access to revenue estimates is a vote against tax relief, in my view.”