[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 45 (Wednesday, April 22, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E629]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                TAX LIMITATION AMENDMENT APRIL 22, 1998

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. RON PACKARD

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 22, 1998

  Mr. PACKARD. Mr. Speaker, today we will have the opportunity to vote 
on a piece of legislation which will make it more difficult for the 
government to raise taxes. The Tax Limitation Amendment is good for 
American taxpayers because, ultimately, it will allow hard-earned wages 
to stay where they belong--in the hands of those who earn them.
  If this amendment to the Constitution is passed, a two-thirds 
majority vote of the House and Senate will be necessary before any tax 
increase is imposed on the American public. Mr. Speaker, isn't this 
exactly what our forefathers intended when they included the concept of 
``no taxation without representation'' in the Declaration of 
Independence?
  Fourteen states already require a supermajority in order for their 
state legislatures to raise taxes. These states have proved that tax 
limitation does work--when taxes are limited, big government spending 
remains low and economies and the job base flourish.
  Tax limitation already exists in the House of Representatives, but 
only through the end of this Congress. Let's preserve this statute, 
which works for government and works for taxpayers. Mr. Speaker, I urge 
my colleagues to listen to the American public, to regulate taxes and 
to support the Tax Limitation Amendment.

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