(Remarks as prepared) As I prepared for today’s remarks, I looked back on the comments I made last year when I spoke to you.  Whether it was looming tax hikes that still hang over this weak economy, stalled trade deals that have since been signed into law, or the debt limit crisis, which the Budget Control Act pushed off until at least the end of this year or early 2013, last… Read more

Our hearing today will focus on three critical aspects of the Customs mission:  modernization, streamlining and facilitation, and enforcement – as well as the accurate, timely measurement of improvement in all three.  I want to welcome everyone and extend a special welcome to our guests.   Just 100 years ago, the main function of Customs was revenue collection… Read more

Our hearing today reviews a key provision of welfare reform: State spending requirements and their impact on work requirements. As part of welfare reform in 1996, States were given a Federal block grant for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (or TANF) program which maintained record Federal spending on welfare.  At the same time, States were allowed to reduce State… Read more

This hearing will be the first in a series of hearings exploring tax-exempt issues and related IRS compliance efforts. Tax-exempt organizations, especially charitable organizations, serve an important role in our society.  From the local little league to non-profit hospitals to major universities, tax-exempt organizations are intertwined with our communities and economy.… Read more

Washington, DC - Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) and Trade Subcommittee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) issued the following statements in reaction to the U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement entering into force today. Chairman Camp stated:  “Today’s entry into force is cause for celebration.  I appreciate and applaud the significant effort by the administrations… Read more

Washington, DC – The Treasury Department’s failure to provide sufficient answers about an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) regulation requiring banks to disclose interest paid to nonresident aliens has prompted Ways and Means Oversight Subcommittee Chairman Charles Boustany, Jr., MD (R-LA) to request additional information from Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner.   “This regulation… Read more

324,000 women dropped out of the nation’s civilian labor force in March and April 895,000 married women have dropped out of the labor force since January 2009 The number of women not in the labor force hit an all-time high of 53,321,000 in April While Mother’s Day is a day that many honor all the women in their lives, it appears this will be an unhappy Mother’s Day for… Read more

In today’s Washington Post, George Will highlights the ways in which the Democrats’ health care law is already contributing to job loss and inhibiting economic growth here at home - leaving job creators and employees alike worried about whether the trend will continue as more and more provisions of the law take effect.   Mr. Will’s piece focuses on the new medical device tax in the… Read more

American Apparel & Footwear Association Two years ago we had the privilege to sit in the White House while President Obama signed into law the United States Manufacturing Enhancement Act of 2010.  That important legislation temporarily eliminated or reduced import tariffs on a range of products that are no longer made in the United States.  That legislation carried on… Read more

We are here today to assess the impact of the Medicare Durable Medical Equipment competitive bidding program.  Our intent is to understand the program’s impact on beneficiaries, suppliers, and Medicare expenditures, and the implications for program expansion.   Congress mandated the use of competitive bidding to establish payment rates for high cost and high volume DME in the… Read more