Conservatives in the House of Representatives have made good on their promise to prevent tax increases and ensure America remains the world’s economic powerhouse.

In 2001 and 2003, Congressional Republicans passed tax relief the American people, and our economy, had been demanding. The results have been remarkable. Since Aug. 2003, more than 5.2 million jobs have been created, including 2 million jobs created

last year and 138,000 last month alone. In fact, this past Friday’s job report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates we are on track to create another 2 million jobs in 2006.

Despite the economic setbacks dealt by Sept. 11th and Hurricane Katrina, our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increased 3.5 percent in 2005 and grew at an impressive rate of 4.8 percent in the first quarter of 2006. This is what happens when America’s tax policies allow Americans to keep more of their own money and empower small businesses, which are the true engines of our economy.

To continue this trend, the largest portion of the Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act passed in the House Wednesday by a vote of 244 to 185, prevents middle-class families from facing higher tax bills by extending relief from the alternative minimum tax (AMT) for an additional year. That means 15 million Americans will be spared from having to pay the AMT in the 2006 tax year and many others will find relief through provisions that increase the personal AMT exemptions.

To promote further job growth and economic expansion, the bill extends through 2009 the increased $100,000 limit on small business expensing. Businesses will not expand and hire more workers without certainty in the tax code. This is why the bill provides further incentive for entrepreneurs to expand their companies by extending through 2010 the 15 percent rate on dividends and capital gains taxes.

Despite the evidence, some still want to play class-warfare with the tax code. They like to claim that tax relief only benefits the wealthy. But the most recent jobs report shows that workers’ average hourly earnings grew at an annual rate of 5.7 percent and the personal disposable income has grown by $2,100 since 2001.

Still, we are presented with challenges. Over the last 25 years, the earnings of workers with college degrees have grown by 22 percent. Over the same time wages by those who elected to not finished high school declined by 3 percent. The disparity between wages of those with a higher education and those without is a result of advancements in technology that creates an economy where there are just as many job opportunities as before but also one in which highly-skilled workers are more in demand.

The Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) is a shining example of the future of the American economy.  This space-age research facility nearing completion at the Oak Ridge National Lab will permit unparalleled scientific and industrial development. Consumers will someday profit from it with advanced medicines, new fuel cells and hydrogen-storage materials that will reduce our need for oil, help clean our air and reduce greenhouse emissions. This one-of-a-kind facility will also draw new businesses to the area and attract the brightest and most talented minds in science.

Jobs such as those being filled at SNS are where America is headed. So while tax relief is the fulcrum of growing our economy, we must work to ensure all Americans have access to these new opportunities. We need to use this economic upswing to invest in human capital - education and skill training that the modern economy demands. On this front, the American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI) President Bush proposed in the State of the Union is exactly the kind of program that is needed to ensure high-paying science and technology jobs are available to hard-working Americans.

While the No Child Left Behind Act helps ensure that every student in America can receive a solid public education and not just a passing grade that may or may not reflect true skills learned, the ACI takes the next step in providing funding for increased professional development for teachers, strengthening K-12 math and science education and reforming the workforce training system to offer training opportunities to some 800,000 workers annually, more than tripling the number trained under the current system. President Bush has committed $5.7 billion to the ACI in his FY 2007 budget.

This is not the time to increase taxes and retreat from a robust and aggressive economic agenda. The labor market is strong and unemployment is low. Individual effort, entrepreneurship and investment in education are the ways to take further advantage of the surging economic engine Republican policies have created.