John Boehner, Nov 16, 2007

At a time when Ohio families are struggling with the rising cost of living, Congress is trying to raise your taxes. It doesn’t make sense. Congress should be looking for ways to reduce your tax burden -- to make it easier for you to deal with sharp increases in healthcare costs, skyrocketing gas prices and college tuition. Instead of trying to lessen your tax burden, Congress is looking for ways to make it worse.

About two weeks ago, the Mother of All Tax Hikes was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. An analysis by the nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation indicates that 90 percent of American taxpayers will see a tax increase under this legislation. By 2011, 94 million American families earning between $20,000 and $200,000 will see a tax hike while only 800,000 families will see a tax reduction -- that’s in direct contrast to what the bill’s backers claim, and it’s important that working families don’t get swindled by a lot of the fast-talking Washington bureaucrats.

According to an analysis by The Heritage Foundation, the median income in Ohio’s 8th District is $44,570 and the average income loss per household in 2012 under the Mother of All Tax Hikes will be $1,973. The district will also lose an estimated 2,114 jobs by 2012 if this tax is enacted. And there will be 36,848 fewer jobs in the state by 2012. The state cannot afford the loss in tax revenue, businesses cannot afford the loss in sales and our working families certainly cannot afford to lose these jobs.

What’s more, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke noted that a large tax increase would be a "drag on the economy," which is the last thing we need during this time of rising costs of living.

There is never a good time for any tax increase -- especially this one, which at $3.5 trillion is the largest in American history. But there could not be a worse time to ask working families and small businesses to pay even more to Uncle Sam every year. Families are working hard to make ends meet at home, and for Congress to demand that they pay higher taxes solely to keep afloat Washington’s ever-growing tax-and-spend agenda is not only irresponsible -- it’s indefensible. I will fight to make sure we defeat this tax hike and reform the tax code on behalf of working families and small businesses.

At the same time politicians are rallying support for this massive package, Congress has not yet taken action to fix a loophole in the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) that will hit an estimated 58,905 taxpayers in the 8th District and more than 1 million total taxpayers in the Buckeye State. Even more taxpayers, though, will get their refunds much later than expected because the IRS will not be able to process returns until it gets an answer from Congress on whether or not the AMT loophole will be fixed. Refunds totaling $75 billion for an estimated 50 million taxpayers will be delayed because Congress is wasting time trying to pass the Mother of All Tax Hikes rather than eliminate the burdensome AMT.

The real problem here isn’t that Congress is trying to increase revenues -- it’s that Congress is looking for more ways to siphon money out of our pockets to spend on pork-barrel projects that have nothing to do with easing your living costs or improving your quality of life. I was asked recently to name some programs I would cut from the federal budget in place of an irresponsible tax to finance this AMT patch. Here’s a start:

• $3.2 billion to revive outdated programs, such as one funding exchanges "with historic whaling and trading partners."

• $1 million for the Clinton School of Public Service in Arkansas.

• $300,000 for an "Exploratorium" in San Francisco.

• $100,000 for an educational program conducted aboard a catamaran in California’s Monterey Bay.

Congressman John Boehner is the House Minority Leader. Boehner, a Republican, represents Ohio's Eighth Congressional District, which includes Miami, Butler, Preble, Darke, and Mercer Counties.