[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 106 (Thursday, July 18, 1996)]
[House]
[Page H7784]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       TAXING EXORBITANT PAY OF MOVIE STARS, ATHLETES, AND CEO'S

  (Mr. DUNCAN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. DUNCAN. Mr. Speaker, last week we passed a cost-of-government-day 
resolution noting that the average person now pays half of his or her 
income in taxes counting taxes of all types: Federal, State, and local. 
This is terrible and getting worse, Mr. Speaker. President Clinton's 
budget estimated in 1994 that young people born that year would pay 
average lifetime tax rates of an incredible 82 percent. So I am no fan 
of higher taxes, and we need to drastically simplify our Tax Code. Yet 
I have come here this morning, Mr. Speaker, because of reports that a 
basketball player has now signed a 7-year, $140 million contract.
  This is sickening. No one could ever really deserve or earn this much 
money. Most people will not earn this much, even one-tenth this much, 
in their entire careers, $20 million for playing basketball for 1 year.
  I oppose increasing our overall tax burden, Mr. Speaker, but we need 
to greatly lower our taxes on middle and lower income people and make 
it up by greatly increasing our taxes on these movie stars, on the 
athletes and CEO's who are earning such exorbitant and undeserved rates 
of pay.

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