[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 157 (Monday, November 3, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S13833-S13834]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    GIVING PRIORITY TO PASSING TAX RELIEF LEGISLATION FOR MILITARY 
                               PERSONNEL

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 257, submitted 
earlier today by Senator Landrieu.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 257) expressing the sense of the 
     Senate that Congress should give priority to passing 
     legislation to provide tax relief for United States military 
     personnel and should offset the cost of such tax relief with 
     legislation preventing individuals from avoiding taxes by 
     renouncing United States citizenship.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Ms. LANDRIEU. Mr. President, today the Senate passed the Military Tax 
Fairness Act of 2003, about $1.1 billion in tax relief for our military 
families. I support this bill. We all support this bill. In fact, we 
passed this unanimously or near unanimously on a coupe of previous 
occasions. We are visiting this bill again today because the House of 
Representatives does not like the offset we used to pay for the bill. 
We paid for it by taxing individuals who renounce their United States 
citizenship in order to avoid paying U.S. taxes.
  It is astounding to me that this bill keeps getting bounced back and 
forth between the Senate and the other body over this issue. We are 
talking about tax relief for military families and we want Americans 
who are exploiting tax loop holes to step up and make that relief 
possible. Most of these people have known great financial success. They 
were blessed by the economic opportunity that our nation's liberty 
gives us and the free enterprise system which make those fortunes 
possible.

[[Page S13834]]

Those blessings were secured by our military personnel. Every year, the 
United States Treasury loses about $80 million on individuals who 
decide that they would prefer to have their cake and eat it too. They 
want American markets, they want American prestige, they want American 
stability, but they do not want the obligations that accrue to American 
citizenship. All the Senate was saying is if you benefited from this 
nation's security, you should be willing to pay for it.
  When the Senate first considered this legislation, I had hoped to 
include a tax credit for the private sector employers of our National 
Guard and Reserve. When our Guard and Reserves answer the call to serve 
they leave jobs, homes, and most of all, their families behind. Many 
employers continue to pay all or part of the salaries of those 
employees who get called up. My legislation would provide those 
patriotic employers with a tax credit for paying up to 50 percent of 
the salaries for their Guard and Reserve employees.
  I understand that my legislation cannot be included in this bill. So 
I am introducing a sense of the Senate resolution to put us on record 
as supporting these employers. The resolution states that we should pay 
for this tax credit by closing the expatriation loophole.
  The facts are simple, and they are laid out in this resolution. Since 
2001, the President has signed tax cuts amounting to $1.75 trillion. 
Today, military families will get their first taste at direct relief. 
Yet, this bill amounts to less than .1 percent of the tax relief that 
the Government has doled out. No one could justify this to voters. So 
it's been happening behind closed doors--in conference reports, and 
parliamentary maneuvering. This resolution is a first step to putting a 
bright, hot spotlight on the truth. The leadership of the House Ways 
and Means Committee is more interested in protecting expatriate 
corporations, than it is in providing meaningful tax benefits to the 
men and women of our Armed Forces.
  I am glad for what we are doing in this bill, but there is so much 
more that can be done and should be done. Personally, I believe that a 
military tax vehicle should be used to discuss military tax issues. 
However, the Senate cannot stand in the way of immediate relief to the 
families of those who have given the ultimate sacrifice in battle. For 
that reason, we are passing this resolution today to send a signal that 
this imbalance must come to an end.
  I appreciate the chairman and ranking member of the Finance Committee 
for agreeing to this resolution in conjunction with the underlying 
bill. I look forward to working with them in the future on giving this 
tax relief to America's employers.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
resolution and preamble be agreed to en bloc, that the motion to 
reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to 
the resolution be printed in the Record, without intervening action or 
debate.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 257) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 257

       Whereas Congress is responsible for providing United States 
     military personnel with the equipment, supplies, and other 
     resources needed to preserve our freedom;
       Whereas Congress is responsible for providing United States 
     military personnel with a comprehensive compensation package;
       Whereas, since 2001, Congress has passed and the President 
     has signed legislation providing for $1,750,000,000,000 in 
     tax relief;
       Whereas the Senate has passed legislation providing for 
     $1,100,000,000 in additional tax relief for United States 
     military personnel and their families;
       Whereas United States citizens benefit from economic 
     opportunities which arise from the liberty protected by 
     United States military personnel;
       Whereas the United States loses approximately $80,000,000 
     per year in tax revenue from individuals who renounce United 
     States citizenship;
       Whereas the Senate has unanimously passed legislation which 
     prevents individuals from avoiding taxes by renouncing United 
     States citizenship as an offset to the cost of providing tax 
     relief for the 1,400,000 active duty military personnel and 
     the 1,200,000 members of the National Guard and Reserves; and
       Whereas Congress has asked the Comptroller General of the 
     United States to conduct a study on the total compensation 
     package provided for United States military personnel in 
     order to ensure that the unique needs of military personnel 
     are addressed: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
       (1) Congress should give priority to passing legislation to 
     provide tax relief for--
       (A) United States military personnel, including those 
     serving in the National Guard and Reserves; and
       (B) the employers of active duty members of the National 
     Guard and Reserves; and
       (2) the cost of such tax relief should be offset by 
     legislation which prevents individuals from avoiding taxes by 
     renouncing United States citizenship.

                          ____________________