Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) and Trade Subcommittee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) issued the following statements today after Mexico suspended half of the tariffs that it had imposed against U.S. products in retaliation for our longstanding dispute over cross-border trucking, which was resolved in a bilateral agreement reached on June 6.    Chairman Camp stated:… Read more

    Source: Department of Labor unemployment rate data and Obama Administration January 2009 projections (in “The Job Impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act”)       February 2009 … Read more

As we heard a few weeks ago from the Public Trustees, unless Congress acts, in 2036 Social Security revenues will only cover 77 percent of promised benefits.  Congress must act and the sooner we do so, the sooner we can protect those who are most vulnerable. Republicans and Democrats agree on this much: current benefits should not change for those in or near retirement.  All… Read more

Washington, DC - Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) today delivered opening remarks at the Committee on Ways and Means Non-Markup of the Pending Trade Agreements with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea.  Below are excerpts, followed by the full remarks. We Must Act Now "Despite questions about how the House, Senate and Administration proceed on TAA, one thing is perfectly… Read more

I’m excited to be here today.  For four years, I have argued that we must move forward with these three pending agreements but, until recently, saw little or no progress toward that goal.  The Committee held five hearings in which we heard about the job-creating benefits of these three agreements, including a series of three trade subcommittee hearings I chaired on each of the… Read more

Washington, DC -  In response to a directive issued this afternoon by the IRS regarding the gift tax treatment of donations to 501(c)(4) organizations, Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) issued the following statement: “I am pleased that following my and other inquiries questioning the motives behind these investigations, the IRS has decided to immediately suspend all… Read more

Washington, DC - Today, the Committee on Ways and Means held a non-markup of the three long-pending trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and South Korea to relay the views of the Committee to the Administration before the trade agreements and implementing bills are formally submitted to Congress. Following the non-markup, Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) and Trade Subcommittee Chairman Kevin… Read more

Washington, DC - The time was October 1976.  KC and the Sunshine Band encouraged Americans to “Shake Your Booty” and the Bee Gees proclaimed that “You Should Be Dancing.”  And Congress created a supposedly “temporary” Federal unemployment tax on jobs, sometimes called the Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA) “surtax.”  Today, after 35 years and eight separate extensions of… Read more

Today, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that so far less than 2 percent of seniors with Medicare prescription drug coverage have benefited from a change their law made to the so-called donut hole in Medicare Part D. Despite the Administration’s efforts to paint this announcement as a victory for seniors, it is clear this provision has simply run-up costs… Read more

Today, Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) issued the following statement in reaction to the announcement that the Senate Finance Committee will proceed this week with a mock mark up of legislation implementing the three pending trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and South Korea, and that Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) has decided to package Trade Adjustment… Read more