[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 5]
[House]
[Page 5996]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




           SUPPORT TAXPAYER ASSISTANCE AND SIMPLIFICATION ACT

  (Mr. McNERNEY asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. McNERNEY. Madam Speaker, I rise today on Tax Day 2008 in strong 
support of H.R. 5719, the Taxpayer Assistance and Simplification Act. I 
commend Chairman Rangel and Ranking Member McCrery for bringing this 
bill to the floor and working hard to simplify our tax policies.
  Today's Tax Code has become so complex that it takes more than 25 
hours to complete an itemized tax return. That is an hour longer than 
2003, and 10 hours longer other than 1989.
  Families will benefit significantly from this legislation which 
strengthens identity theft and tax fraud protections, stops taxpayer 
harassment by ending the private collection of Federal taxes, and 
expands tax refund assistance for low-income Americans.
  I am also pleased that the provisions in the Taxpayer Assistance and 
Simplification Act increase online fraud security and allows 
individuals to have better recourse in the event of a crime.
  Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 5719.

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