Washington, D.C.- Congressman Neugebauer (R-TX) released the following statement at the Republican Leadership’s Economic Recovering Hearing: 

“Speaker Pelosi and the Democrat Majority continue to believe the best way to help families and stimulate the economy is to further increase spending on government programs. I strongly disagree. Excessive borrowing, spending and debt resulted in many of the problems the government, individuals and businesses now face.  More of the same is not the answer.

“We owe it to American taxpayers to stop creating reactionary policy and start considering long-term solutions. I believe there are alternatives which is why I have introduced H.R. 301, the Economic Growth Through Tax Stimulus Act. This legislation will make the 2001 and 2003 tax relief permanent, reduce marginal individual income tax rates by 5 percentage points for the next five years and reduce the top business and individual income tax rate to 25% for the next 5 years. 

“Bailouts reward unsuccessful companies; reducing taxes helps successful employers, both small and large, retain more capital so they can be more productive, hire more workers and improve wages. Across-the-board tax relief means the government is not picking winners and losers.  As a former business owner, I know that reducing business taxes will lead to job growth and reduce the annual tax burden on every household.

“Based on analysis done by the Heritage Foundation the economic impact, job creation, increased household income and new output from this degree of tax reduction are significant.  This type of stimulus policy will translate into half a million more jobs in 2009, add an additional $130 billion in GDP and increase the economic growth rate.

“The American taxpayers deserve a better plan from the federal government than more spending on top of a deficit already projected to be more than $1 trillion this year. Congress must focus on solutions that empower individuals and businesses to succeed in the economy rather than solutions that make them more dependent on the federal government.” 

###