[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 54 (Thursday, April 26, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E661]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                 TAX LIMITATION AMENDMENT: H.J. RES. 41

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                        HON. BENJAMIN A. GILMAN

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 26, 2001

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. J. Res. 41, 
the Tax Limitation Amendment 2001.
  H.J. Res. 41 amends the U.S. Constitution to require that any bill, 
resolution or legislative measure that proposes to change Internal 
Revenue laws must have the approval of two-thirds of those voting in 
the House of Representatives and the Senate. This requirement would not 
apply when a declaration of war is in effect, or when the United States 
is engaged in a military conflict which causes an imminent and serious 
threat to national security as found by both Chambers and the 
President.
  Mr. Speaker, in his famous McCulloch vs. Maryland opinion, Chief 
Justice John Marshall stated that ``The power to tax is the power to 
destroy.'' This amendment sets out to make it more difficult for the 
Congress to arbitrarily erase taxes, and presumably, makes the Federal 
Government more efficient and less bloated with unnecessary spending.
  History has demonstrated that it is far easier for Congress to raise 
taxes to cover spending deficits than it is to reduce that spending to 
reasonable levels. This is all the more true today, now that the 
government is operating at a surplus. Neither party wants to be held 
responsible for any future return to peacetime deficit spending. Should 
such an event appear likely to occur, the temptation to raise taxes to 
cover any potential deficit would be overwhelming.
  The enactment and ratification of this amendment would thus prevent a 
return to the situation which existed in this country 25 years ago. 
During the 1970s, middle-class families were struggling to get by under 
crippling high marginal tax rates, which, thanks to high inflation and 
bracket creep, reached deeper into the working class ranks with every 
passing year.
  Accordingly, I urge my colleagues to fully support H. J. Res. 41, The 
Tax Limitation Constitutional Amendment.

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