[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 76 (Tuesday, June 5, 2001)]
[House]
[Page H2852]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                TAX CUTS

  (Mr. PITTS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PITTS. Madam Speaker, last week Congress passed the biggest tax 
relief package since the start of the Reagan administration. Every 
American taxpayer is going to get a refund check in the mail this 
summer. Over the coming years, rates will decline, the death tax will 
be repealed, the marriage tax penalty will be partially fixed, we will 
be able to put more in our retirement plans, and be able to deduct more 
for the cost of college education. This is real help for real 
Americans.
  But the American taxpayers deserve to know that there were a lot of 
big-spending liberals who thought they did not deserve these tax cuts. 
Even though we have been running multi-billion dollar surpluses for 
several years, some people in Washington did everything they could to 
stop this tax relief. In fact, the only way to get it done at all was 
to use what we call ``budget reconciliation,'' which cannot be 
filibustered in the other body and requires only 51 votes since they 
could not get to 60.
  But budget reconciliation only lasts for 10 years. Before the 10 
years is up, Congress must extend the tax relief. I hope that Congress 
will do that. In the meantime, I hope all the big spenders in Congress 
who voted against this cut will donate their $300 refund check back to 
the Treasury.

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