[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 40 (Wednesday, April 1, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E553]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         RETURN OF THE DEADLINE

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                           HON. BOB SCHAFFER

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, April 1, 1998

  Mr. BOB SCHAFFER of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, this month millions of 
Coloradans will begin the time-consuming and stressful task of 
preparing tax returns for the April 15th deadline. Considering the 
time, irritation, and inconvenience required to comply with our 
increasingly complicated federal tax code each year, it's not 
surprising that some common synonyms for the word ``tax'' include: 
demand, oppress, accuse, exhaust, and burden.
  Americans spend a combined 5\1/2\ billion hours each year working to 
comply with our current tax system. Meanwhile, the 114,000 employees of 
the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) are toiling too. They must in order 
to churn out the 8 billion pages of forms and instructions mailed to 
lucky recipients like you and me each January. And don't forget the 
trees. Over 300,000 trees are chopped down each year just to produce 
the paper for these riveting publications. Even the easiest form, the 
1040EZ, has 33 pages of instructions--all in fine print.
  Meanwhile, what do we have to show for our personal contributions of 
time, stress and inconvenience? A federal budget that amounts to more 
than $1.7 trillion per year, and a federal debt surpassing $5.5 
trillion and gaining. If all that cash was going only to the essential 
functions of government--defending our borders, and providing those 
services that cannot be effectively left to individuals, States, 
groups, charities, or markets--we'd be in good shape. But in reality, 
much of this spending goes toward programs our government has no 
business providing, or all too often, is just plain squandered. 
Remember the ``essential'' expenditure of $800,000 to study methane 
production in European cows, or the $13,000 we spent to fly top Clinton 
officials an enduring 55 miles for a round of golf?
  No, this is just plain wrong, and this is the very reason I came to 
Congress. Just weeks ago I presented the taxpayers with a check for 
more than $354,000 in unspent funds from my 1997 office budget--nearly 
40 percent of my allotment. This is but a small example of how our 
government, can be doing much more work, for much less cash.
  This is why I cosponsored and voted for three of the most important 
pieces of legislation in decades. The Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997, 
providing the first net tax cut in 16 years; the Balanced Budget Act of 
1997, bringing our federal books in balance for the first time since 
1969; and the IRS Restructuring Act, getting us one step closer to 
reining in one of the most abusive agencies in America, and setting us 
up to scrap the entire tax code in favor of one that is fairer, 
flatter, and simpler.
  But we all have a role in making our government better and more 
responsive. Each and every one of us has the moral obligation to ensure 
our government is the leanest and most efficient service provider on 
Earth.
  All Americans should keep in close touch with their elected 
officials--call them, write them, and e-mail them. Remind your public 
servants that you are watching their every move, and that the measure 
of their achievement depends upon the betterment of your life, and that 
of your family.
  There is an old saying that government is a necessary evil. Let's 
just ensure that when we write those checks on April 15th, we are not 
buying more evil than we can handle.

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