John Spratt: “There was a provision that allowed for reserve accounts so that we could provide for these tax cuts. But basically we…”

“There was a provision that allowed for reserve accounts so that we could provide for these tax cuts. But basically we took the position that this decision does not have to be made now, and indeed it can be better made closer in time to December 31, when we see what is the bottom line then. How much debt have we accumulated? What is the total deficit? What is the forecast for the future? At that point in time, we can consider the tax cuts, extension of them. By my understanding, if you extend all of the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts that expire on December 31, the cost over 10 years is about $2 trillion. That's a big decision. We think you should make it deliberately and closer in point of time to when these tax cuts actually expire. Let me say also that not only did we put these tax cuts and state our support for them in the budget resolution, but in addition, when the tax cuts were passed in 2001, we either had substitutes or occasionally voted for independent free-standing provisions like the marriage penalty relief. Democrats were there when that passed the House. I voted for it the first time it came up and voted for it again repeatedly. In our substitutes, we had a 12 percent bracket and then a 10 percent bracket. We had a child tax credit, which we continually increase, and we had the R&E tax credit extension. We had expensing for small businesses.…”