House Republican Leader John Bohner (OH) is asking again today, "Why Can’t We Start Cutting Spending Right Now?". Responding to reports that President Obama will propose legislation that, if passed by Congress and enacted into law, would eventually force Congress to vote on cutting unnecessary spending, Bohner said, "We’re pleased President Obama is interested in demonstrating fiscal discipline, but he already has the authority to force Congress to consider spending cuts immediately and Republicans have been inviting him to use it for months. With our national debt nearing $13 trillion and Democrats on the verge of adding another $200 billion to the deficit, why can’t we start cutting wasteful Washington spending right now." He added, "If President Obama is truly committed to fiscal responsibility, he will use the authority he already has under the law to force Congress to vote immediately on spending cuts. He should also call on Democrats in Congress to pass a real budget that reins in overall federal spending. The House has never failed to pass a budget in the modern era, and its failure to do so now would signal that America is ill-prepared for its growing fiscal crisis.”
The Los Angels Times is reporting on why the Democrats are opting out of their responsibility to pass a budget for the first time in the modern era, "Facing the uncomfortable reality that the federal government's 2011 budget shows record levels of red ink, congressional Democrats may resolve the politically thorny situation by simply refusing to pass a budget resolution this election. With voters in no mood to hear about Washington's $1.3-trillion deficit, some moderate and conservative Democrats say they would rather sit this one out. They have found common cause with liberal colleagues who don't want to pass spending cuts, especially while the economy is still struggling." It is obvious, that the Democrats wish to duck and even run from preparing a budget. They have failed to control spending and now they wish to hide from the consequences before the 2010 elections. Makes you wonder why we should ever leave Democrats in control of a Congress. Wait a minute, we do not have to - Vote them out - November Elections are coming!
Also, this week brings even more stories explaining the negative consequences of Democrats’ massive, unpopular, and hastily considered health care legislation. In the last few weeks, there have been stories detailing how the law will result in higher health care costs for the government, higher premiums for families, higher taxes, employers incentivized to drop coverage, cuts to Medicare, and lost jobs. Today, there are stories explaining that recent studies indicate that penalties and tax credit phase-outs could hurt small businesses and larger employers, likely making it more difficult to hire new employees.
The New York Times reports, “About one-third of employers subject to major requirements of the new health care law may face tax penalties because they offer health insurance that could be considered unaffordable to some employees, a new study says. . . . As they study the law, employers are discovering another provision that got much less attention. If a company offers coverage but requires any full-time employees to pay premiums that amount to more than 9.5 percent of their household income, the coverage is deemed unaffordable, and the employer may have to pay a penalty. . . . An employer offering unaffordable coverage is subject to a penalty of $3,000 a year for each full-time employee who gets government assistance to buy insurance in an exchange. The maximum penalty is $2,000 times the total number of full-time employees in excess of 30.”
As is often the case with these kinds of requirements, the burdens fall heaviest on industries that employ low-wage workers. The NYT writes, “Andy R. Anderson, an expert on employee benefits at the law firm Morgan Lewis, said, ‘A lot of employers, particularly those with low-wage work forces, will run into difficulty with the affordability requirement.’ Retailers and restaurants with large numbers of low-wage workers may be most affected. Michael C. Gibbons, chairman of the National Restaurant Association, said, ‘The cost of health care reform will be devastating to our industry.’”
Meanwhile, The Hill reports, “A study by the National Center for Policy Analysis shows that tax credits in the new healthcare law could negatively impact small-business hiring decisions. The new law provides a 50 percent tax credit to companies offering health coverage that have fewer than 10 workers who, on average, earn $25,000 a year. The tax credit is reduced as more employees are added to the payroll. The NCPA study finds the reduction in tax relief to be a cost concern for companies looking to hire additional workers, but operate on slim profit margin yet still provide employee health coverage. ‘You wouldn’t think this would have an impact, but at the margins, when they [business owners] decide to hire an extra worker, they’re not only going to be paying that worker’s salary, they’re going to have to absorb the cost of losing the tax credit,’ Pamela Villarreal, NCPA Senior Policy Analyst and co-author of the report, told The Hill.”
Once again, new reports are showing (albeit after the bill has been passed) that many of the problems with the health care law raised by Republicans are being borne out. A bill that hits employers with penalties that make it harder to hire workers at a time of 9.9% unemployment is the last thing Americans need. As Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said recently, “[A]ll these headlines are only confirming what the American people already believed, and what Republicans said, all along: that more government isn’t the solution to out-of-control health care spending any more than spending money we didn’t have on projects we didn’t need was the secret to robust job growth.” The health care bill needs to be repealed and replaced with something that provides real reform that controls costs and helps, rather than hurts, small businesses. Again, November Elections are coming!
Tags: Washington, D.C., US Senate, US House, US Congress, congressional budget, failed democrat leadership, Obamacare, increased taxes, 2010 elections, November is Coming To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
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