[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 107 (Tuesday, July 27, 1999)]
[House]
[Page H6566]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                TAX CUTS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Kuykendall) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. KUYKENDALL. Mr. Speaker, tonight I rise to speak about our most 
recent tax cut that was put in place, and also to discuss what I think 
was the key element of that passage, that is, the trigger that was 
added in on the last round of amendments that were put in place.
  Mr. Speaker, we have had projections that are almost mind-boggling 
when we look at the dollar amount of these surpluses we are projecting 
into the future. If we do not count the Social Security surplus, but 
just in our other accounts, we have nearly $1 trillion worth of surplus 
projected. Now, with that number being projected, our tax cutters 
looked at it and said, well, we would like to give 80 to 90 percent of 
that back to the American public in the form of a tax cut.
  I, for one, fully agree with giving back tax dollars that are that 
much in surplus to those needed to run our government functions. 
However, when it is done on a 10-year forecast, there is risk involved 
in how accurate that forecast may be. And as I looked at that, I said 
we need to do something to protect the tax cuts and, at the same time, 
ensure that we continue this path of paying down public debt.
  In doing so, we came to a triggering mechanism. And the trigger works 
in the fashion that if we are not continuing to pay down the debt, we 
will not take the tax cut that year. It is a simple mechanism. Just how 
much interest are we paying on the debt? If that number does not get 
smaller each year, then we will pay more down on the debt and not have 
a tax cut that year.
  The trigger mechanism is very important because it allows us to very 
responsibly manage the affairs of this government's finances by paying 
down our debt and reducing taxes, but not doing one at the exclusion of 
the other.
  Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. KUYKENDALL. I yield to the gentleman from Michigan.
  Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the gentleman for 
yielding to me, because a number of us were instrumental in helping to 
write this trigger.
  On Friday, Mr. Speaker, I was reading the Wall Street Journal and 
there was a story in there and in it apparently Alan Greenspan, the 
chairman of the Federal Reserve, was asked before the House Committee 
on Banking and Financial Services what he thought about this trigger 
and he said this: ``I think that the notion of using a potential 
trigger is essential,'' Greenspan said. He further went on to add that 
using the surplus to reduce the Federal debt is ``an extraordinarily 
effective force for good in this economy.''
  He signed onto this. In essence, what the trigger is, it is a 
stoplight. If what the OMB and the CBO folks say is correct in terms of 
the expectations of where we are going to be with the budget surplus, 
things happen the way they say, and the debt, in fact, is coming down, 
$5.5 trillion is what it is today, the tax cut goes forward.

                              {time}  2200

  But if, in fact, something happens, if interest rates go up, if 
spending goes up, and, in fact, the amount of money needed to service 
the Federal debt goes up rather than declines, the red light goes on. 
So it is a safety valve. And it also is going to serve as a break on 
additional spending as well.
  So I think that this was a very important measure that a number of us 
fought for. And furthermore, today I know a number of us communicated 
to our leadership that we are hoping that the Senate certainly adds 
this provision in their tax bill that they are debating this week. And 
if they are not able to get it included, then at least maybe in the 
conference, when we iron out the differences between the House and the 
Senate, that certainly the House would prevail on this making sure that 
the taxpayers are protected by making sure that this trigger device 
stays in effect.
  I applaud the leadership of my colleague on this. It was important as 
a number of us met with Republican leadership and others. It is a 
trigger with real teeth. It is going to do the right thing, and that is 
what we are here for.
  Mr. KUYKENDALL. Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time, I appreciate that 
comment.
  I think the important part of this is, I have used the phrase 
``responsible.'' I think it is also discipline that it imposes upon us 
as a Government.
  I came from local governments and State governments where our budgets 
had to be balanced, and we could not issue debt unless we were asking 
the voters to approve it. But we do not do that here. We play that role 
ourselves.
  In this case, we have imposed a discipline with this particular 
triggering mechanism that I think it is essential that it come back in 
the conference version of this bill. And it is important, I think, that 
our colleagues on the Senate side hear that, as well.
  We have a mechanism now that will impose discipline, give us 
responsible Government, control the debt, and still allow almost $800 
billion worth of tax cuts.

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