Mark R. Warner

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) today highlighted a new economic analysis revealing that Virginia would be hurt more than almost any other state from the sweeping automatic federal budget cuts scheduled to take effect in two weeks.

The new analysis, released Monday by economists Mark Vitner and Michael Brown of Wells Fargo Securities, identifies the greater Washington, D.C. region, which includes Northern Virginia, and Hampton Roads as regions which have the most to lose under sequestration.  Yesterday’s Wells Fargo report notes that continued political uncertainty over sequestration “has been a weight on economic growth” this past year. The Wells Fargo analysis also notes that Virginia has a high level of exposure to nondefense spending reductions ranging from homeland security to biomedical research. The analysis echoes concerns raised by George Mason University economist Dr. Stephen S. Fuller last fall, who forecasted significant potential job losses in Virginia due to federal budget cuts.

Image from 2012 Wells Fargo Securities Study

“It is frustrating that more people here in Washington do not have a sense of urgency about taking action to head-off these sequester cuts. The uncertainty already is having a real and negative impact on our economy: many Virginia families and businesses are pulling-back on their financial activity in anticipation of yet another self-inflicted wound to our economy courtesy of Washington,” Sen. Warner said.

“Northern Virginia had been a bright spot in Virginia’s slow but steady recovery from the recession, but economists have now concluded what most of us already anticipated: the partisan gamesmanship and dysfunction is having a negative impact on business investment, hiring, income growth and overall economic activity,” Sen. Warner said. “In Hampton Roads, we’ve already seen the deployment of one Navy aircraft carrier delayed and the overhaul of another put on hold as the Navy tries to figure out how to balance our  national security priorities with our fiscal challenges. In many cases, these difficult short-term budget decisions will end up costing taxpayers more because we’re having to cancel contracts that include negotiated savings built-in to multi-unit purchase agreements. ”

Sen. Warner, a leader since late 2010 of the Senate’s “Gang of Six,” has continued to work toward consensus on a broad, balanced  and bipartisan plan to address deficits and debt.  In recent weeks, he has worked to find consensus on a proposal to provide some flexibility to prioritize potential spending cuts within military and federal agency budgets while still achieving the overall targeted savings.     

              “There’s a smart way and a stupid way to cut spending, and these across the board sequester cuts represent the absolute dumbest way to be conducting the nation’s business. I continue to work with my colleagues in urging the White House and congressional leaders to at least provide enough flexibility for agencies to make more rational budget decisions,” Sen. Warner said. “And looking beyond the March 1^st sequestration and the March 27^th budget deadlines, I still maintain that we should be able to find a way to come together to craft a balanced, bipartisan approach to address our deficit and debt challenges. We need to raise more revenue, we must reform and strengthen our entitlement programs, and we need to make smarter, more targeted spending cuts. The sooner we can come together on a ‘grand bargain,’ the sooner we can remove this cloud of uncertainty over an economy that otherwise appears ready to take-off and grow again.”

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WASHINGTON, DC – Members of Virginia’s Congressional Delegation today sent a letter to President Barack Obama, Speaker John Boehner, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid expressing their unity for immediate action to avert looming cuts set to hit March 1, stressing the disproportional impact to the Commonwealth of Virginia. The bicameral, bipartisan group of members also stressed the enormous impacts on the country’s national security and federal government, and the ripple effect on Virginia’s economy.

Virginia Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, and Representatives Rob Wittman (VA-1), Scott Rigell (VA-2), Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-3), J. Randy Forbes (VA-4), Jim Moran (VA-8), Frank Wolf (VA-10), and Gerry Connolly (VA-11) wrote, in part:

“As a bipartisan delegation of Virginia lawmakers representing wide-ranging interests and viewpoints, we write to show unified support for immediate action to avert the devastating impacts of sequestration. The Commonwealth of Virginia, with its long history of contribution to our national defense and to the federal government, will bear a disproportionate amount of the pain imposed by these arbitrary cuts should they come to pass.”

Full text of the letter follows:

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) today sent a letter to the heads of the Consumer Financial Protection Board (CFPB) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) urging them to take action to improve consumer credit reporting. Recent CFPB and FTC reports found that 20 percent of consumers could identify at least one error in a credit report issued by one of the three major credit reporting agencies and that more than five percent of consumers found significant errors.  These mistakes could force consumers to pay more for insurance and loans, and could impact their access to security clearance.

"People can lose their jobs because of this information, and have their families thrown into chaos," the Senators wrote to CFPB Director Richard Cordray and FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz. "They can be denied credit for purchasing automobiles necessary to commute to and from work. They can fail to receive mortgages, or be turned down for apartments. All of these impacts can throw families into deteriorating financial situations that spiral out of control."

Sens. Warner and Warren have asked Director Cordray and Chairman Leibowitz to produce a report determining  whether additional oversight or legislation is needed to improve credit reporting. The Senators also urged Cordray and Leibowitz to examine the cumbersome process for disputing errors on consumer credit reports. 

"The significant impact of consumer credit scores on the general public is not, in our minds, matched by the degree of transparency and responsiveness of the consumer credit reporting system to meet consumer need," the Senators wrote. "Our nation remains in a critical period of economic recovery, and tens of millions of Americans are emerging from problematic mortgages and other debts that have become more burdensome since the financial crisis began. We find this this situation unacceptable."

Sens. Warner and Warren expect to work with Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), who led a subcommittee hearing on the topic in 2012, as well as Banking Committee Chairman Chairman Tim Johnson (D-SD) and Ranking Member Mike Crapo (R-WY), to move forward on these issues.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) today introduced Startup Act 3.0, an updated version of a bipartisan jobs and high-skilled immigration plan to strengthen the economic recovery through the creation and growth of new businesses. Co-sponsors of Startup Act 3.0 include Sens. Jerry Moran (R-KS), Chris Coons (D-DE) and Roy Blunt (R-MO). Startup 3.0 builds upon Startup 2.0, which was introduced in the last Congress.

Startup Act 3.0 creates both Entrepreneur Visas and STEM Visas for highly-educated and entrepreneurial immigrants to stay in the United States, where their talents and new ideas will fuel economic growth and create American jobs. The legislation also modifies the tax code to encourage investment in new businesses, helps to accelerate the commercialization of university research that can lead to new ventures, and seeks to improve the regulatory process by requiring a rigorous cost-benefit analysis of new proposed regulations.

“With a renewed focus on comprehensive immigration reform, it is imperative that we take commonsense steps to help Virginia and America compete and win in the global competition for talented innovators and entrepreneurs,” Sen. Warner said “Our bipartisan legislation also proposes reasonable steps to reform our tax and regulatory policies to help promote investment and job creation. In addition, Startup 3.0 looks to accelerate the transfer of university R&D into the marketplace.”

Research shows that for close to three decades, companies less than five years old have created almost all of the net new jobs in America – averaging about 3 million jobs each year.  Additionally, immigrants to the United States have a long history of creating businesses in America. Of the current Fortune 500 companies – including Apple, Google and eBay – more than 40 percent were founded by a first- or second-generation American. These American companies employ more than 10 million people. Both American and foreign-born entrepreneurs are needed to jumpstart the economy through the creation and growth of new businesses.

“I'm encouraged to see continued enthusiasm and momentum in Washington to support entrepreneurs,” said Steve Case, a cofounder and former CEO of Virginia-based AOL and a member of President Obama’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, said. “With the reintroduction of the bipartisan Startup Act, Senator Warner is demonstrating a real commitment to help the United States win the global battle for talent. By creating a new visa for foreign students with advanced STEM degrees and immigrant entrepreneurs, and by eliminating the per-country cap on employment-based visas, we will make it easier for the best and the brightest from across the globe to start businesses, innovate, and create jobs right here in the United States.”

“America has long been seen as the land of opportunity for innovators and entrepreneurs. I fear those days are coming to an end,” Sen. Moran said. “At a time when our economy needs jobs first and foremost, America’s archaic government policies have us falling behind. We are losing talent and jobs by the day to countries like Canada, Chile, and the United Kingdom that are aggressively courting the world’s best and brightest. We must pass Startup Act 3.0, or we risk losing the next generation of great entrepreneurs and the jobs they create to countries that have taken action to attract and better support these innovators.”

The provisions in Startup Act 3.0 have been endorsed by CEA, TechAmerica, Financial Services Forum, the National Small Business Association, Google, CONNECT, CTIA, Engine Advocacy, Computer and Communications Industry Association, the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce, the Austin Chamber of Commerce, Angel Capital Association?, ITI, Northern Virginia Technology Council, Perceptive Software, Shenandoah Valley Technology Council, Silicon Valley Leadership Group?, Tampa Bay Technology Forum, TechNet, Virginia Chamber of Commerce and Wichita Chamber of Commerce.

Startup Act 3.0 includes the following provisions:

• Creates an Entrepreneur’s Visa for legal immigrants, so they can remain in the United States, launch businesses and create jobs;
• Creates a new STEM visa so that U.S.-educated foreign students, who graduate with a master’s or Ph.D. in science, technology, engineering or mathematics, can receive a green card and stay in this country where their talent and ideas can fuel growth and create American jobs;
• Eliminates the per-country caps for employment-based immigrant visas – which hinder U.S. employers from recruiting the top-tier talent they need to grow;
• Makes permanent the exemption of capital gains taxes on the sale of startup stock held for at least five years – so investors can provide financial stability at a critical juncture of firm growth;
• Creates a limited research and development tax credit for young startups less than five years old and with less than $5 million in annual receipts. This R&D credit is designed to allow startups to offset employee taxes – freeing up resources to help these young companies expand and create jobs;
• Uses existing federal R&D funding to support university initiatives designed to bring cutting-edge research to the marketplace more quickly where it can propel economic growth;
• Requires all government agencies to conduct a cost-benefit analysis of all proposed “significant rules” with an economic impact of $100 million or more. This new requirement will help determine the efficacy of regulations and their potential impact on the formation and growth of new businesses; and
• Directs the U.S. Department of Commerce to assess state and local policies that aid in the development of new businesses. Through the publication of reports on new business formation and the entrepreneurial environment, lawmakers will be better equipped to encourage entrepreneurship with the most successful policies.

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WASHINGTON -- U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) released the following statement tonight:

"I was pleased the President began his speech with a strong call for a bipartisan grand bargain to continue to address our deficits and debt.

A balanced plan that includes additional revenue, smarter spending cuts and responsible entitlement reform -- and avoids the self-inflcted wounds from sequester -- is a key component of any economic growth agenda.

The President also endorsed a proposal I unveiled last week to work to double our nation's energy productivity by 2030, and I look forward to helping to lead the effort to make smart investments to rebuild our nation's infrastructure.

We will have many opportunities in the weeks and months ahead to work together to strengthen the economic recovery and move our country forward."

“I’m proud to have cosponsored the Violence Against Women Act, which passed the Senate today on a strongly bipartisan vote of 78-22. In Virginia, this Act has doubled the resources available for prevention and intervention of sexual violence in communities and on campus. The funding provides vitally important crisis services in nearly every locality in Virginia, and I urge the House to act quickly in passing this bill so we can get it to the President’s desk for his signature.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), and Chris Coons (D-Del.) urged President Obama to highlight startups and small businesses in his State of the Union address next Tuesday. In May 2012, Sens. Moran, Warner and Coons introduced legislation called the Startup Act 2.0 to jumpstart the economy through the creation and growth of new businesses.

“As you prepare to deliver your State of the Union address, we encourage you to speak about the important role entrepreneurs play in economic growth and job creation,” the Senators said in a letter to the President. “Our legislation, which we plan to reintroduce next week, builds on recommendations made by your Council on Jobs and Competitiveness to jumpstart economic growth. Startup Act 2.0 provides new opportunities for highly-educated and entrepreneurial immigrants to stay in the United States, modifies the tax code to encourage investment in new businesses, accelerates the commercialization of university research that can lead to new ventures, and seeks to improve the regulatory process.

“You have the opportunity again this year to lead Congress toward enactment of significant legislation that will boost entrepreneurial activity and result in the creation of new jobs,” the Senators continued. “We stand ready to work with you on this important issue.”

Click here to read more about Startup Act 2.0. Click here to read the proposals outlined by the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness.

To see the letter to the President in its entirety, please see below or click here.

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February 7, 2013 

President Barack Obama

The White House

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Northwest

Washington, D.C. 20500

Dear Mr. President:

            As you prepare to deliver your State of the Union address, we encourage you to speak about the important role entrepreneurs play in economic growth and job creation in your speech. 

            Since 1980, entrepreneurs and their young companies have been responsible for nearly all of the net job creation in the U.S. economy—creating an average of 3 million new jobs each year.  Entrepreneurial icons like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and Sergey Brin have not only created new products and services that changed the way Americans live and work, but also provided tens of thousands of jobs to our citizens.  The lesser known, but equally hard-working entrepreneurs who open a small business on Main Street provide livelihoods for their families and keep communities across our nation strong.  We need both kinds of entrepreneurs to restore prosperity to America and there are steps Washington can take to achieve this goal.

            Working together, we introduced legislation last year called Startup Act 2.0 that would unleash the power of entrepreneurs in America.  Our legislation, which we plan to introduce again next week, builds on recommendations made by your Council on Jobs and Competitiveness to jumpstart economic growth.  Startup Act 2.0 provides new opportunities for highly-educated and entrepreneurial immigrants to stay in the United States, modifies the tax code to encourage investment in new businesses, accelerates the commercialization of university research that can lead to new ventures, and seeks to improve the regulatory process.

            In your State of the Union address last year, you called on Congress to pass an agenda that helps startups and small businesses succeed.  Congress took an important step in this direction by passing the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act, but there is more that must be done.  Startup Act 2.0 picks up where the JOBS Act left off, particularly by addressing the issue of talent and providing a way for highly-skilled immigrant entrepreneurs to stay in the United States and employ Americans.  Mr. President, you have the opportunity again this year to lead Congress toward enactment of significant legislation that will boost entrepreneurial activity and result in the creation of new jobs.  We stand ready to work with you on this important issue.

Sincerely,

Jerry Moran                                               Chris Coons                                        Mark Warner

United States Senator                               United States Senator                         United States Senator

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) issued the following statements upon today’s nomination of Marilyn Tavenner as Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services:

“I applaud the nomination of Marilyn Tavenner to be Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services,” Sen. Warner said. “Marilyn is the real deal: she began her career as a nurse and rose to become CEO of a leading healthcare company. Today she serves at the highest levels of CMS, where she has garnered bipartisan support from Congress and respect from the business community. Marilyn's background provides her with the unique skills to bring together the private and public sectors to work on the challenge of overseeing our critical healthcare programs.”

“Marilyn is an exceptional choice to run the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid and I strongly support her confirmation,” said Sen. Kaine. “As my Secretary of Health and Human Resources in Virginia, Marilyn took a creative and results-oriented approach to finding significant savings during tough fiscal times. A nurse by training, Marilyn also never lost sight of the importance of patient care. Marilyn’s experience in both the public and private sector make her uniquely qualified to manage this critical set of programs and help find ways to strengthen Medicare and Medicaid for the long term. After 7 years without a confirmed CMS Administrator, I can't imagine why Marilyn would not be confirmed promptly.”

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WASHINGTON -- U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) announced today that his special guest at next Tuesday’s Presidential State of the Union address to a Joint Session of Congress will be immigration reform advocate Ambar Pinto, 19, of Fairfax County. Pinto, an undocumented immigrant from Bolivia, arrived in Virginia seven years ago, along with her parents and younger brother. She graduated from Fairfax High School, and currently is a sophomore majoring in international business at Northern Virginia Community College.

“Ms. Pinto’s dreams and her drive represent the promise of so many young people across Virginia,” Sen. Warner said. “Her story reminds each of us that our commonwealth will become stronger when we create a responsible pathway to legal status for undocumented immigrants and their children.”

Sen. Warner said he was moved to invite Pinto to the State of Union speech after reading her story in the Richmond, VA Times-Dispatch last week.  “I was moved by her obvious love for this country, and by her willingness to work extra hard to have a shot at achieving the American dream,” Sen. Warner said.

Paying $2,500 per semester at community college, Pinto had advocated for passage of the 2013 Virginia DREAM Act, a General Assembly proposal that would have allowed eligible undocumented immigrants to pay lower in-state tuition rates. Thus far, the proposal has been sidetracked during this year’s session of the General Assembly.

In 2003, then-Gov. Warner pursued a similar effort through amendments to legislation banning lower in-state tuition rates for undocumented immigrants. Gov. Warner’s amendments would have authorized in-state tuition for students who, among other specific requirements, had arrived here as children, resided in Virginia for at least five years and paid taxes for at least three years, graduated from a Virginia high school, and who could demonstrate they were taking steps to legalize their immigration status.  After the legislature rejected these amendments, Gov. Warner vetoed the legislation.

Pinto says she is excited to have an opportunity to attend next week’s State of the Union address as the special guest of Sen. Warner. “This is such a big honor,” Pinto tells the Times-Dispatch. “I am very involved in my community, but I never expected to get something back in return. It will be an unforgettable experience,” Pinto said.

Since joining the Senate in 2009, Sen. Warner has established a tradition of extending similar opportunities for notable Virginians. His guest at last month's presidential inauguration was Sara Jane Arnett of Newport News, an Army spouse and a leading advocate for Virginia's military families. Similarly, former Hopewell Mayor and civil rights leader Rev. Curtis Harris, Sr. was Sen. Warner's invited guest at the 2012 State of the Union address.  

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) issued the following statement upon today’s confirmation of John Kerry as Secretary of State:

“I am pleased that the Senate overwhelmingly confirmed John Kerry as Secretary of State today. As a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for almost 30 years and its current Chairman, as well as a decorated combat veteran, John is eminently qualified for this important position. I look forward to working with him to promote American values abroad and strengthen our national security.”