Senate Votes to Extend Tax Deductions 

On Dec. 9, I voted for the Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006 – a comprehensive package of tax, health, trade and energy provisions. The bill passed the Senate by a vote of 79-9.

This package provides important tax relief for Tennesseans, including an extension of the state and local sales tax deduction and permanent tax fairness for our songwriters to allow them to continue paying the same capital gains tax rates that other businesses pay. It also includes an extension of the research and development tax credit that will help us keep our good jobs at home instead of seeing them move overseas.

I voted for this legislation because of its many benefits for Tennessee and the nation, but I regret that Congress did not do more to offset the cost of the bill. I look forward to working with my colleagues from both parties next year to redouble our efforts to control spending and put our nation back on the path to a balanced budget.

Provisions of the legislation include:

Two-year extension of the state and local sales tax deduction – over 532,000 Tennesseans received average deductions of $400 on their 2004 federal tax returns, totaling over $200 million in tax savings.

Permanent tax relief for Nashville songwriters – allows songwriters to treat the sale of their song catalogs as capital gains instead of income, thereby dropping the tax rate from as high as 35% to the same 15% capital gains rate paid by other businesses.

Extends tax deduction for qualified tuition and related expenses – extends the provision allowing Tennessee families to deduct up to $4,000 in higher education tuition and other expenses to help families afford the cost of higher education.

Provides a two-year extension of the research and development tax credit – The R&D tax credit encourages businesses to invest in cutting edge research to help us maintain our competitive edge in the global economy.

Meeting With Incoming Defense Secretary Robert Gates 

On Dec. 6, I met with U.S. Defense Secretary Nominee Robert Gates to discuss the war in Iraq, jobs and defense-related issues in Tennessee. Tens of thousands of Tennesseans have served and are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Bob Gates’ appointment offers an opportunity for fresh thinking and the clear mission that our country and those serving there deserve.

As Secretary of Defense, he will also play a key role in helping our country keep its brainpower advantage by increasing research and improving education. Dr. Gates was a member of the Augustine Commission which was formed at the request of Sen. Jeff Bingaman and me by the National Academies to determine what actions we need to take to keep our advantage in the global economy. The commission’s report led to competitiveness legislation we coauthored that has broad bipartisan support in the Senate.

I asked Dr. Gates to remember our commitments to the National Guard and reminded him of the important role that so many Tennessee guardsmen have played not only in Iraq and Afghanistan but also in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

I urged Dr. Gates to fulfill outgoing Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld’s commitment to assign a new flying mission to the 118^th Airlift Wing of the Tennessee Air National Guard in Nashville. The Pentagon previously announced that a new Joint Cargo Aircraft mission is well suited to be located in Nashville. I also asked him to ensure that National Guard units are reequipped since many, like the 278^th in Tennessee, have depleted equipment through use in combat or left equipment behind in Iraq for those units that relieve them. 

Dr. Gates is an extraordinarily good appointment. I’m pleased he was approved by the Senate and sworn into office. He has the maturity and experience to be an independent voice and wise counselor on the difficult situation in Iraq.

Encouraging Ruling From ITC on Steel Tariffs 

On Dec. 14, the International Trade Commission (ITC) issued a ruling ending costly tariffs on steel used in the production of automobiles, meaning that tens of thousands of auto jobs will stay in this country instead of going overseas. Tariffs were ended on corrosion resistant steel imported from four of the six countries under review.

It doesn’t make sense to protect a few steel jobs at the expense of tens of thousands of auto jobs. I wish the commission had gone further, but I am encouraged by the ruling. I have been leading a three-year fight against these tariffs. In September, I authored a letter, signed by ten of my Senate colleagues, urging the ITC to repeal the current antidumping and countervailing duty orders on certain corrosion resistant flat steel products from several countries. In July of 2003, I called on President Bush to reverse steel tariffs he had instituted in 2002, citing their potential negative effect on the growth of the automobile industry.

The combined value of transportation equipment manufacturing in Tennessee exceeds $6 billion according to the state Department of Economic and Community Development, and more than 150,000 Tennesseans are employed in jobs related to the auto industry.

Committee Assignments for 110^th Congress 

On Dec. 13, newly-elected Republican Leader Mitch McConnell announced that I will become the first Tennessee Republican ever to serve on the Senate's Appropriations Committee, widely considered to be its most powerful committee because of its jurisdiction over federal spending.

Sen. McConnell also appointed me to the Environment and Public Works Committee which has jurisdiction over the Tennessee Valley Authority, clean air and transportation issues, and to the Rules Committee. I will also be the third ranking Republican member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

These appointments could not have been better for Tennessee. The appropriations assignment gives me the best possible opportunity to help control spending and to help Tennesseans receive our fair share of federal funding. The other committee assignments allow me to work for Tennesseans on the issues I care most about: education, energy, the environment, job creation and helping the new TVA board of directors keep electric power reliable and reasonably priced. I am grateful to Sen. McConnell for this show of confidence in me during what is only my first term in the Senate.

Congress Passes PREEMIE Bill to Study Causes, Combat Premature Births 

On Dec. 8, Congress passed the PREEMIE Act, legislation I introduced with Sen. Chris Dodd to expand research on premature births, improve education for expectant mothers, and provide better treatment for babies who are born too early. The bill now goes to President Bush for his signature.

Premature infants are 14 times more likely to die in their first year than infants who are carried to term. Prematurity accounted for 19 percent of all childhood deaths in Tennessee in 2002 and, on average, 214 babies are born preterm in the state each week. We simply do not know why half of these babies are born preterm and this legislation will help solve that mystery. It will also help us reduce the number of premature births and take better care of babies that do arrive too soon. 

The PREEMIE Act provides: expansion of prematurity research at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); studies on the relationship between prematurity and birth defects and developmental disabilities; a grant program to educate health professionals and the public on signs of preterm labor and to provide support for parents with a premature baby in a neonatal intensive care unit; and a Surgeon General’s conference on preterm birth which will establish an agenda for prematurity related activities in both the public and private sectors. 

Honoring Bill Frist 

I can still remember when Bill First came into my office in Nashville in 1994 and said he wanted to run for the U.S. Senate. I didn’t know what to think. I didn’t know him very well. Our ages are a little bit different, and he had been away while I was governor of Tennessee, practicing medicine and honing his skills.

What I learned about him was extraordinary. He was one of the pioneers in our country of heart-lung transplants. When he decided to run for the Senate, only a handful of surgeons in the world had performed as many heart transplants as Dr. Bill Frist.  

Bill Frist had almost no chance of being elected to the U.S. Senate in 1994, but he was elected. He had almost no chance, having been elected, of helping the Republicans gain the Senate majority in 2002, but he did that. No one really expected him to be Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate, but he has been.  

When I think of our country and Bill Frist, I think of lower tax rates. I think of two Supreme Court justices and a record number of judges confirmed who will interpret the law rather then make it up as they go along. I think of a comprehensive energy bill that passed under his leadership. I think of the personal imprint of Senator Frist on the prescription drug Medicare benefit that millions of Americans need and are enjoying, and I think of the $15 billion generous gesture of this country to Africa to fight HIV-AIDS which would not have happened were it not for Bill Frist.  

When I think of Tennessee and Bill Frist, I think of our new Tennessee Valley Authority board of directors to keep our rates low and reliable. I think of our ability to deduct our sales taxes from our federal income tax and dozens of other things that have been good for Tennessee. 

When I think of Bill Frist, I think of civility and decency and a good smile. I think of hard work and a demeanor as a U.S. Senator that his parents would be proud of.  

And one thing is certain: anyone who knows Bill Frist won’t underestimate him again. History has proven that’s a dangerous thing to do. I don’t know many people who’ve been in public life who have as many interesting and important options open to them as he does as he looks forward to his next contribution to public service. 

In the news… 

I thought you might be interested in these articles that recently ran in the Memphis Commercial Appeal and the Nashville City Paper:

Bill Targets Premature Birth 
http://www.alexander.senate.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=Articles.Detail&Article_id=130&Month=12&Year=2006 

Top Committee Post May Help Alexander 
http://www.alexander.senate.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=Articles.Detail&Article_id=132&Month=12&Year=2006 


Senator Alexander and U.S. Defense Secretary Gates 

I recently met with U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates to discuss the war in Iraq, jobs and defense-related issues in Tennessee. I urged Dr. Gates to fulfill outgoing Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld’s commitment to assign a new flying mission to the 118th Airlift Wing of the Tennessee Air National Guard in Nashville. I also asked him to ensure that National Guard units are reequipped since many, like the 278th in Tennessee, have depleted equipment through use in combat or left equipment behind in Iraq for those units that relieve them.