Payroll Tax Holiday Extended
On February 17, 2012, the full United States House of Representatives voted 293-132 to pass compromise legislation (H.R. 3630) extending a temporary reduction of 2% in the employee payroll tax rate - from 6.2% to 4.2% - through the remainder of 2012. The Senate subsequently voted 60-36 to clear the legislation for the President’s signature. The bill was signed into law on February 22, 2012.
Rep. Todd Platts voted “yes” on H.R. 3630. The final bill included many provisions from a previous House-passed measure (see January e-newsletter), including a provision stopping a more than 27% cut in Medicare payments to physicians and a provision to reform extended unemployment benefits. H.R. 3630 reduced the maximum number of weeks of unemployment benefits from 99 to 73, with that number decreasing based on a state’s current unemployment rate. For example, Pennsylvania’s state-wide unemployment rate was 7.6% in December 2011, which - under H.R. 3630 - means Pennsylvania residents will be now eligible for a maximum of 63 weeks of unemployment benefits. As the state’s unemployment rate decreases, so will the eligible number of weeks. H.R. 3630 also adds conditions for eligibility – including reemployment training and drug testing for some recipients.
The Medicare provision was critically important to ensuring seniors’ continued access to health care choices. The cost of the Medicare provisions was offset by other changes in federal health care programs, including the repeal of two provisions contained in the new health care law. The cost of the extended unemployment benefits was offset by auctioning off more spectrum for wireless use and modifying federal employee retirement benefits. Other offsets proposed by the House were dropped from the final compromise in order to secure Senate passage.
House Passes Energy, Budget Measures
During the month of February, the House of Representatives debated energy policy in the United States and a series of bills intended to reform the federal budget process. All of these measures passed, with Rep. Todd Platts voting “yes.”
With respect to energy policy, the House debated and passed House of Representatives Bill 3408 (H.R. 3408). In order to address increasing energy costs, this legislation would expand energy exploration in various areas off the coast of the United States as well as a portion of the Alaskan coastal plain. The bill requires that lease sales for off-shore energy exploration take place in areas with the largest undiscovered reserves of oil and natural gas, and it requires that energy exploration in the Alaskan coast have no significant environmental impact. The measure passed by an overall vote of 237-187.
The budget measures included a bill eliminating a requirement in current law that assumes – for purposes of federal budgetary rules – that discretionary spending will increase every year at the rate of inflation (H.R. 3578). This assumption in the law means that any increase in spending that is less than inflation is deemed a “cut” in spending. This in turn creates a bias in favor of the federal budget growing. The bill to eliminate this assumption and bias in favor of spending passed by a vote of 235-177.
A second bill would require the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to include the larger economic impacts of major legislation – such as the impact on jobs and economic growth – in reports prepared for Congress (H.R. 3582). Currently, they only consider the impact on the federal budget itself. H.R. 3582 passed by a vote of 242-179.
Finally, the House passed a bill that would give the President line-item veto authority (H.R. 3521). Specifically, the President could sign an overall appropriations bill into law, but then propose specific spending cuts from the bill within 45 days. Currently, the President is forced to sign into law or veto the entire measure. Also under the bill, Congress could be forced to consider the spending cuts as legislation on the floor under expedited procedures. H.R. 3521 passed by a vote of 254-173.
Other Web Page Highlights (www.house.gov/platts)
Federal Government Makes Progress in Reducing Improper Payments, But Much Work Remains to Be Done
The federal government reported an estimated $115 billion in improper payments in Fiscal Year 2011, a slight improvement over Fiscal Year 2010, but a hearing on February 7th revealed that more needs to be done to ensure taxpayer dollars are spent much more wisely. The hearing, entitled “Solutions Needed: Improper Payments Total $115 Billion in Federal Misspending,” was held by the Subcommittee on Government Organization, Efficiency and Financial Management, chaired by Congressman Platts. Additional information is posted to the web site. (http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/pa19_platts/Improperpayments2012.shtml)
Statement in Favor of the Balanced Budget Amendment
Rep. Platts spoke on the House floor in favor of the passage of a Balanced Budget Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, as currently exists already in 49 states. The House voted 261-165 to pass the amendment, short of the 2/3rds required to send a proposed Constitutional amendment to the states for ratification. His statement is posted to the web site.
(http://www.house.gov/apps/list/speech/pa19_platts/BBA.shtml)
Statement in Support of the Workforce Democracy and Fairness Act
Rep. Platts spoke on the House floor in favor of legislation to restore key protections to the American workplace, for both workers and their employers, from overreach by the National Labor Relations Board. His statement is posted to the web site.
(http://www.house.gov/apps/list/speech/pa19_platts/workforce.shtml)
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