[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 185 (Monday, December 5, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8185-S8186]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. CASEY:
  S. 1944. A bill to create jobs by providing payroll tax relief for 
middle class families and businesses, and for other purposes; read the 
first time.
  Mr. CASEY. Mr. President, I am here to speak about legislation I am 
introducing today that will prevent a huge tax hike from hitting 
working families across America and in Pennsylvania.
  As the clock continues to tick down, it is imperative we come 
together--Democrats and Republicans, Members of both parties, in both 
Chambers--and pass legislation to provide more take-home pay by cutting 
the payroll tax, as we did in 2010.
  The legislation I am introducing is a compromise offer designed to 
bridge the gap and to get at least 60 votes in the Senate.
  The legislation is fully paid for and includes measures that have 
received bipartisan support in the past. We can no longer afford to 
jeopardize middle-income Americans in order to protect the wealthiest 
few across our country.
  This legislation will help working families by extending the current 
payroll tax cut and expanding that cut to a 3.1-percent level--a 3.1-
percent reduction in the payroll tax. In essence, what we are talking 
about is cutting the payroll tax in half as it relates to employees.
  Small businesses will benefit from this legislation by benefiting 
directly from the additional money in the pockets of Americans across 
the country.
  Those with incomes above $1 million should help in carrying a portion 
of this burden, and that is why the surtax is still in this 
legislation, but the surtax will now be only 1.9 percent, compared to 
the 3.25-percent in an earlier version of my legislation.
  In addition, I have offered a few more offsets that have received 
bipartisan support.
  The bottom line is--just as the first bill was that I offered--this 
legislation is indeed paid for.
  The tax cut is key and an essential ingredient to job creation and 
economic growth in 2012. Economists and forecasters--from Moody's 
Analytics to RBC Capital Markets, to Barclay's Capital, to 
Macroeconomic Advisers--have all emphasized that the tax cut will 
accelerate growth in 2012. Without it, economic growth will slow and 
job creation will take a hit.
  Mark Zandi, of Moody's Analytics, has said that without the payroll 
tax cut for 2012, ``we'll likely go into recession.''
  Congress should act quickly to expand tax relief and remove the 
uncertainty for working families in this holiday season about whether 
their taxes

[[Page S8186]]

will go up in the new year. More take-home pay to keep the economy 
growing is what we need right now--and especially in the year ahead.
  I encourage all our colleagues in the Senate, as well as those in the 
House, to pass this legislation to continue and to expand a cut in the 
payroll tax.
                                 ______