Economy and Jobs
![Dollar bills in front of the US flag Dollar bills in front of the US flag](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20130104124540im_/https://ros-lehtinen.house.gov/sites/ros-lehtinen.house.gov/files/styles/section_front_boilerplate/public/economy.jpg)
Working to create jobs here at home.
I am working to remove obstacles to economic growth and private sector job creation. We must ease the regulatory burden on America’s job creators; reduce the tax burden on families and small businesses; and bring down our record national debt. I am committed to take every sensible step to help spur job creation and get our economy back on track so that Americans can do what they do best: create, innovate and lead.
The House has already passed over 30 pro-growth measures to address the jobs crisis. Unfortunately, all but a handful of these House-passed jobs measures are still awaiting action in the Senate.
We need to help America’s job creators compete in an increasingly global economy. Both parties must work together to help clear the way for long-term economic growth and help the private sector in producing the jobs that are needed for the future of our families.
To meet these goals I have:
I voted for The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (JOBS Act) to help startups and entrepreneurs get off the ground, access capital and create jobs and spur economic activity. (H.R. 3606)
I voted for and staunchly advocated for the passage of job-creating free trade agreements with Panama, Colombia and South Korea. Panama and Colombia are among South Florida’s top trading partners. These free trade agreements will help create and support countless local jobs and businesses. (H.R. 3078, H.R. 3079, H.R. 3080)
I voted to repeal the job-destroying 1099 provision in the government takeover of health care, voted to save taxpayers $24.7 billion in tax receipts, and voted to stop $24.8 billion in wasteful government spending. (H.R. 4)
I voted for The Middle Class Tax Relief & Job Creation Act to provide an extension of the current payroll tax rates, delay in the implementation of the Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate (the so-called “Doc Fix”), and extend and reformed Unemployment Insurance benefits. (H.R. 3630)
I voted to repeal the burdensome 3% withholding requirement for doing business with federal, state, and local governments (H.R. 674)
I voted to protect producers of resource-based products, farmers and ranchers from increased regulation and provide their struggling industry with much needed certainty. (H.R. 1633)
I voted to increase accountability and transparency in the federal regulatory process. Congress has excessively delegated its constitutional charge while failing to conduct appropriate oversight and retain accountability for the content of the laws it passes. The REINS Act would result in improved regulatory process. (H.R. 10)
I voted to modernize the 65-year old Administrative Procedure Act and improve how federal agencies write the regulations that most significantly affect the U.S. economy. Regulations can be expensive and overwhelming for small businesses. Washington’s complex regulatory maze results in a per-employee regulatory cost to a small firm. Small businesses need regulatory reform that will ensure that future regulatory actions will accurately reflect a rule’s cost on the economy, and provide certainty that agencies will choose the least-costly regulatory option that meets statutory goals. (H.R. 3010)
I voted to require federal agencies to analyze fully the impact a new regulation would have on small businesses, before the agency adopts the regulation. (H.R. 527)
I voted to create a fair and equitable employment-based immigrant visas system. Under this system, US companies will be able to focus on what they do best – hiring smart people to create products, services, and jobs for Americans. (H.R. 3012)
I voted to protect employers and employees from ambush elections by the National Labor Relations Board. The bill guarantees that employees have an appropriate amount of time to decide if they want to join a union and protects an employee’s privacy by letting them decide how they wish to be contacted by the union. (H.R. 3094)
I voted to remove burdensome SEC restrictions which prevent crowdfunding, an innovative method of raising capital which allows a large number of individuals to pool their resources to fund businesses. Regulations have restricted the flow of capital to America’s job creators, and have piled more unnecessary stress on our already struggling economy. (H.R. 2930) [Part of the now passed JOBS act]
I voted to end uncertainty on how companies can go about seeking capital, making companies be proactive and search for possible investors other than going door-to-door. This change gives small businesses another way to access private capital by allowing them to widely seek funds from the entire pool of SEC accredited investors without requiring them to go through the full SEC registration process. (H.R. 2940)
I voted to improve small businesses’ access to capital by expanding equity financing options. Capital formation is necessary for business expansion and job creation and sustained economic growth. (H.R. 1965)
I voted to raise the amount of money that a business can receive in a Regulation A public offering, the first increase in 20 years, providing regulatory relief for small businesses that sell shares of their company stock to increase capital. This bill provides small businesses with the option of raising more capital to expand and increase hiring of workers. (H.R. 1070)
I voted to provide the right balance between conservation and resources utilization by exchanging federal lands for privately-owned, high-priority conservation lands. This swap will also allow the private-sector to create and support new jobs while saving endangered species, sensitive ecosystems, recreational sites, and historic landmarks. (H.R. 1904)
I voted to develop enforceable electricity production standards that are the most effective and least burdensome. And that will achieve environmental goals without harming consumers and destroying jobs. (H.R. 2273)
I voted to save billions in compliance costs for industries and the potential loss of hundreds of thousands of American construction jobs. (H.R. 2681)
I voted to curb rules with major negative consequences for manufacturing and industrial facilities, universities, hospitals, commercial facilities, hotels, and municipal buildings. This bill would mandate real-world achievability standards and impose the least burdensome regulatory alternatives (H.R. 2250)
I voted to establish an interagency committee to evaluate the economic impacts of regulations that would stifle job creation, hurt American economic competitiveness abroad, and increase energy prices on families.(H.R. 2401)
I voted for the Protecting Jobs From Government Interference Act to keep businesses flexible and able to develop opportunities for growth and job creation. (H.R. 2587)
I voted to create tens of thousands of good jobs and reduce our dependence on importing thousands of barrels of oil from unstable sources in the Middle East. (H.R. 1938)
I voted to reform the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPD) and restore accountability, ensure impartial decision making, and prevent bureaucratic tunnel vision at an agency that wields enormous power over financial services and businesses. Small businesses and individuals rely on access to a wide range of credit instruments, and an unaccountable, unchecked CFPB would make it harder for job creators to borrow, hire, and expand. (H.R. 1315)
I voted to remove more barriers to economic growth and job creation through the Clean Water Cooperative Federalism Act - empowering states and reining in the burdensome regulatory agenda. (H.R. 2018)
I voted to pursue sensible energy reforms designed to increase the production of American-made energy, create jobs, and make America more secure and energy independent. (H.R. 2021)
I voted to safely end the de facto moratorium on offshore energy production. (H.R. 1229)
I voted to again cut $6.2 trillion in government spending in the Budget. (H.Con.Res. 34)
I voted to prevent a backdoor, cap-and-trade-style national energy tax and protect our economy from massive job losses and higher energy costs. (H.R. 910)
I voted to prevent a government takeover of the internet by the FCC. (H.J.Res. 37)
I voted to reduce overlapping and unnecessary regulation on farmers and small business owners. (H.R. 872)
I voted for a review of Federal regulations and their effect on economic growth. (H.Res. 72)
Job Creation: Empowering Businesses To Innovate, Grow, And Hire
According to a September 2010 report from the Small Business Administration, total regulatory costs amount to $1.75 trillion annually—enough money for businesses to provide 17.5 million private sector jobs with an average salary of $100,000. As of 2008, small businesses—which have created 64 percent of all new jobs in the past 15 years—face an annual regulatory cost of $10,585 per employee, which is 36 percent higher than the regulatory cost facing large firms.
Unfortunately the jobless recovery continues. Unemployment remains stubbornly high and employers are reluctant to hire.
Since January 2009, the economy has lost millions jobs and those who have lost a job are searching longer than ever to find a new one.
Small business owners are truly the backbone of our Nation's economy, employing tens of millions of workers and creating most of the new private sector jobs that are so important for economic growth. America’s small businesses create two out of every three new jobs in the U.S. each year.
These small businesses are being bogged down by burdensome regulations from Washington that prevent job creation and hinder economic growth. We must clear away the government red tape which prevents businesses from growing, expanding, and hiring new employees.
Producing more jobs also means changing our tax code which has the second highest corporate tax rate in the world and has destroyed America’s global competitiveness.
Creating jobs requires the passage of trade pacts with Colombia, Panama and South Korea, which will greatly expand access to overseas markets for small businesses here in the U.S. As the our nation’s entrance to the Americas, South Florida and its residents have much to gain from increased trade with our hemispheric democratic partners. Hundreds of thousands of people are employed in the trade industry, here in Florida, which exported more than $47 billion in goods last year.
We must all be a part of the full and lasting economic recovery for our country and our community.
See also information on resources for businesses.