[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 8]
[Senate]
[Pages 11579-11581]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                             TAX EXTENDERS

  Mr. REID. Madam President, this morning I want to take just a few 
minutes and update the Senate on our work here in the Senate. Not only 
do I want to update our fellow Senators but also our constituents 
watching around the country about the bill currently before this body.
  For people around America, for people in the State of New York, the 
State of the Presiding Officer, I have received calls from the Governor 
of New York on many occasions, and I mean many occasions. We have had 
long discussions about how this money that is in this bill is so 
necessary for the State of New York.
  Yesterday, I met with Mayor Bloomberg. Mayor Bloomberg was here 
trying to reach out on a bipartisan basis to get this bill passed. He 
called a number of Republican Governors and reported to me as to those 
conversations. Without a single exception, Republican Governors, 
Democratic Governors--I have not talked personally to any Republican 
Governors, but, as I indicated, Mayor Bloomberg did--I have talked to 
Democratic Governors who have called me about how desperate parts of 
this country are for this money. It is not only the money we refer to 
as FMAP, the money for teachers, the money for police officers, 
firefighters, but it is all other moneys.
  The State of New York, I have been told--I say New York because the 
Presiding Officer is here, but this story could be told many times over 
in the Senate Chamber about other States--the State of New York badly 
needs these summer jobs. It may be the only opportunity these young men 
and women will have to learn how to work. You have to learn how to 
work.
  The bill that is before the Senate creates jobs, cuts taxes, and 
closes corporate loopholes. We are closing many of those loopholes used 
by people who are shipping jobs overseas, in effect, cheating the 
government, according to our constituents.
  This is really a good bill, a necessary bill, and it would make our 
economy stronger. It is a bill we are fighting for because the 
recession has hit Nevada. Unemployment rates there are extremely high. 
I am personally fighting for it because we need to help small 
businesses grow and hire and once again be the engine that runs our 
country. I am fighting for it because I don't

[[Page 11580]]

think big business should get rewarded for shipping jobs out of America 
when so many here at home are desperate for a paycheck and the dignity 
of a day's work.
  I didn't recognize here on the Senate floor the distinguished Senator 
from the State of Michigan. No Senator has fought harder for the 
underprivileged and the unemployed than the Senator from Michigan, Ms. 
Stabenow. I appreciate her ability to communicate a message, and the 
message we all have to communicate is that this money is going to help 
our States, it will save jobs, and it will create jobs.
  This is the eighth week since March that we have tried to find a 
resolution for this issue. We have gone back and forth countless times, 
considering ideas, compromising when necessary, and courting support. 
But I have come to the conclusion that the other side does not want a 
solution. We have changed, we have moved--you want this, we will give 
you this. Everything in this bill is paid for--everything is paid for 
except unemployment compensation. FMAP, the money for firefighters, 
police officers and teachers and nurses, is paid for. Everything is 
paid for except the long-term unemployed.
  We have tried to bring it to the floor, but the Republicans have said 
no. Once we finally succeeded in bringing it to the floor, we tried to 
bring it to a vote. The Republicans said no. Somewhere along the line 
throughout these charades, this job-creating, tax-cutting, loophole-
closing bill has become a political football, and that is really too 
bad. The debate is focused more on winning and losing than on doing 
what is right.
  I want to take a step back and talk about what is really in the text 
of this legislation. Let's be really clear about all the good things a 
``yes'' vote enables our country to do--this is not what it allows the 
Senate to do; this is what will benefit the country--and what a ``no'' 
vote stops us from doing. Remember, everything is paid for except 
unemployment compensation.
  This bill has an extension of a tax deduction for tuition.
  It has an extension of the deduction for State and local sales tax.
  It has an extension of the standard deduction for property taxes. If 
this bill does not pass, they are not there.
  It has an extension of a deduction for cost of classroom supplies 
purchased by teachers. This is not much. It may not seem like much to 
most people. Teachers under this legislation get a $250 deduction for 
the supplies they buy. My niece teaches high school. She buys lots of 
stuff because the school district doesn't supply the supplies that are 
needed. She will get a $250 tax credit. That is not much, but it means 
a lot to her, and it means a lot to the millions of teachers around 
this country. That is in this legislation.
  We have in this bill a $4 billion extension of Build America Bonds 
that provide low-cost financing for infrastructure investments. We had 
that first of all in the economic recovery package, the so-called 
stimulus bill, and that has created hundreds of thousands of jobs all 
over America. We put a few dollars in it in our last jobs package, we 
put some money in. That money is gone now, Build America money. State 
and local governments are begging for these moneys. This $4 billion 
would create jobs all over America, jobs that are needed for 
infrastructure development.
  This legislation has in it an extension of the Small Business 
Administration lending programs that provide low-cost loans to small 
businesses.
  This legislation includes a $2.5 billion fund for State wage 
assistance programs to move people from welfare to work, the so-called 
TANF Program. This was created during the Clinton years to do something 
about getting people off welfare and to work. It has been a wonderful 
program, but it is out of money. The State of Michigan and the State of 
New York are desperately in need of this money.
  This legislation before the Senate extends a research and development 
tax credit and provides more than $6 billion in assistance to firms 
conducting research on new technology.
  This legislation provides $5 billion in new markets tax credits that 
encourage investments in economically distressed areas.
  Everything I have talked about is job creating.
  This legislation has in it something that is so important. We have 
had a program here that was initiated and continued and was the 
brainchild of Senator Isakson, from Georgia. It said: The housing 
market is very depressed. There are a lot of houses on the market. For 
first-time home buyers, why don't we give them an incentive. And we 
did. We called it a first-time home buyers tax credit. It was $8,000. 
Millions of homes have been purchased on that program. Right now, we 
have lots of people who have qualified for these first-time home buyer 
loans. They are totally qualified, but the banks and other financial 
institutions are moving very slowly. That money will be unavailable 
after June 30 unless we extend this. We want to extend this for 90 
days. It is totally fair. It is totally paid for, again.
  The legislation we have before us allows retail and restaurant 
businesses to write off property investments over 15 years rather than 
over 39 years.
  This bill provides tax credits to assist mining firms with rescue 
team training and virtual safety equipment.
  This bill provides wage assistance so firms can continue to pay 
normal wages to employees who are members of the military's Reserves 
and are Active Duty.
  The bill contains incentives to encourage film and television 
production in the United States. Most television production now is 
going some other place outside the United States.
  I have only talked about a few of the things in this legislation that 
are so very important. Later today, we will hold a vote on all these 
items I talked about and more. Those who want to help middle-class 
America will vote yes. Those who want to help business in America will 
vote yes--big business, small business. This is not just for the middle 
class, it is for helping create jobs in America.
  Those who want to protect corporate America with not having them do 
their fair share should vote no. If they want to continue to allow 
these jobs to be shipped overseas and have these companies get tax 
benefits for doing so, then they should vote no. If they want those 
billionaires in our country--billionaires, these hedge fund operators 
and others who pay less taxes than someone who draws minimum wage--then 
they should vote no if they want to continue that.
  Many people I have met who run these hedge funds and are wealthy 
people have called me and said: You are doing the right thing. There is 
no reason that we should pay a less percentage of our tax than somebody 
who draws minimum wage.
  Those who want to create jobs and create the conditions for recovery 
will vote yes. Those who want to kill jobs, want to stop our recovery 
in its tracks and want to keep things the way they are, will vote no. 
Those who want our economy to prosper and succeed will vote yes. Those 
who want this Congress and this country to fail will vote no.
  There are people betting on our country to fail. Maybe that will help 
them in November. Those who put people first will vote yes. Those who 
put politics first will vote no.
  The American people are watching and they are waiting for us to act. 
They demand that their Senators understand what they are going through 
and how they are struggling.
  I met a man who is back in Washington to attend seminary. He writes 
insurance for small contractors. One problem. There are no contractors 
to write insurance for. There is no work.
  The American people are watching and they are waiting for us to act. 
I do my very best to understand. I know what the people of Nevada are 
going through. I have heard from the Senator from Michigan what the 
people of Michigan are going through. I have heard from the Senator 
from New York, the Presiding Officer, what the people of New York are 
going through.
  But it is not just Nevada, New York, and Michigan; it is, with very 
few exceptions, everyplace in America. I know how much good a bill like 
this would help a family in Nevada, a family in Michigan, a family in 
New York.

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We are not Senators from New York, Senators from Michigan, Senators 
from Nevada. We are United States Senators. We have an obligation to 
protect our States, and we do our utmost to do that. But we also have 
to recognize national problems. That is why we are United States 
Senators.
  I do hope other Senators here, for the sake of those in Nevada and 
New York and Michigan and States all around the country, for the sake 
of those in our States, for the sake of our Nation's economy will vote 
yes. For those who still do not see the value in creating jobs, cutting 
taxes, and closing corporate loopholes, I hope they will take some time 
today to come to the floor and listen to their fellow Senators who 
believe in this legislation.
  I hope they will listen with an open mind and with their 
constituents' best interests in mind. The time to decide is closing in 
on us. But it is not over yet. It is not too late to do what is right.

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