[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 130 (Thursday, September 30, 1999)]
[House]
[Page H9028]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  IMPLEMENTATION OF THE EARNED INCOME TAX CREDIT SHOULD NOT BE DELAYED

  (Mr. NEAL of Massachusetts asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. NEAL of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, I was stunned by this 
headline in the New York Times today. It said that the Republicans plan 
to delay the earned income tax credit for the working poor. This 
program, Ronald Reagan said, was absolutely the best one ever devised 
to help the working poor, and the answer here today is that we are 
going to delay its implementation.
  Mr. Speaker, in this institution we would never dream of delaying an 
income tax refund to the wealthiest Americans. We would never dream of 
delaying oil incentives or mining incentives; or, heaven forbid, we 
would never dream of cutting back on the ethanol subsidy. But the 
answer today is that we should delay granting the working poor the 
earned income tax credit to get past this budget impasse that we 
currently see.
  It makes no sense to harm the working poor with this issue. We should 
be coming to their assistance. If one works, one should not be poor. 
This idea makes no sense whatsoever, and it is being used as a gimmick 
to get around this budget impasse. We should proceed with granting the 
working poor this opportunity.

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