Congressman Sander Levin

Survey Results

Earlier this year, I sent out a Legislative Update and Federal Issues Survey to residents of the 12th Congressional District to hear their priorities for action in Washington this year. I really appreciate that thousands of residents from throughout Macomb and Oakland counties took the time to share with me their views. Thank You! To see detailed results of the survey, please click here.

Survey Response #1: The Economy

These are challenging economic times in our communities. The responses reflected this with Job Creation the #1 priority.

Congress acted shortly after President Obama was inaugurated to enact the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to jumpstart our economy and make key investments in our future. My office has been working to ensure that Michigan families have access to these programs and that our communities fully participate. To learn more about economic recovery efforts, click here.

New Trade and Tax Policies

A full 58 percent of respondents on the economy favor changing trade and tax policies so we send fewer jobs overseas. I completely agree. As Chair of the Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee, I am working to dramatically change U.S. trade policy. I believe that U.S. businesses and workers can compete in the global marketplace if the playing field is level, the rules of competition are fair, and unfair barriers to our products are knocked down. The first piece of trade legislation I introduced this year was a trade enforcement bill to open foreign markets for American exporters, strengthen our trade remedies against unfairly traded imports, improve import safety, and combat counterfeit and pirated imports.

I am a co-sponsor of legislation to end overseas tax havens that have allowed the very wealthiest to shelter their income overseas and avoid U.S. taxes. Just a few weeks ago, the President proposed reforms that will replace loopholes and other features of our tax code that encourage the shifting of business operations overseas with strong incentives like the R&D Credit to create the jobs of the future right here at home

The Importance of the Domestic Auto Industry

The global financial crisis combined with the domestic economic recession has battered the Big 3 at a time when they were trying to get back on their feet for the future. When we hear others talk about restructuring, we know that means pain for our families and communities in Michigan. I know that too often the debate has not seemed fair or fully in touch with what we know in Michigan -- the automotive industry built the middle class and is the backbone of our nation’s industrial base. Helping the domestic auto industry surviving the current crisis and prepare for the future has been my focus every day these last months. To learn where things stand today, click here.

Survey Response #2: Health Care Reform

When asked what aspect of health care reform would have the most impact on you or your family, the overwhelming number of respondents said “lower health care costs and out of pocket expenses.” It was clear that people favored expanding health care coverage to more people. Nearly 40 percent thought that everyone should be covered through a public insurance program like Medicare and 30 percent indicated that we should expand our current health care delivery systems to cover more people.

Reforming our health care system is not only important to ensure that every American has access to health care, but also to restoring our long-term economic strength and global competitiveness. President Obama and Congress are determined to pass comprehensive health care reform this year.

I believe that if you like your current health plan, you should be able to keep it. But we must fix what’s not working by reducing costs, increasing prevention, improving quality, and covering uninsured Americans.

The Ways and Means Committee, on which I serve, along with the Energy and Commerce Committee and the Education and Labor Committee just released a legislative discussion draft in order to provide enough details about reform options to hold hearings and gather input. To learn more, click here

I have also set up a Health Care Hub to keep you posted on local health care reform discussions and to gather your input.

Survey Response #3: Energy Independence

When it comes to action to achieve energy independence, a strong majority (55%) favored investment in renewable sources of energy. The next highest preference (25%) was to expand U.S. production of domestic fossil fuels. There was significantly less support for building new nuclear plants and energy efficiency investments.

Congress is working to increase investments in clean energy, energy efficiency and emerging technologies, and to limit carbon pollution. The goal is to set a new direction on energy that will create jobs here at home, curb our nation’s dependence on foreign sources of energy and reduce the carbon pollution that causes global warming. Done the right way, I believe that moving to a clean energy economy will create thousands of new jobs for Michigan.