Congress is immersed in the annual give-and-take necessary to pass the 12 spending bills that will fund the federal government for the 12 months starting Oct. 1.

Lawmakers are hammering out the details of a $2.9 trillion budget blueprint that will distribute tax revenue from the Federal Treasury.

Spending decisions will invest hard-earned tax dollars to safeguard national security, supportU.S.troops, strengthen public works and enhance the wellbeing of the American people. Congress will consider spending measures designed to grow homegrown renewable energy, tighten border security, ensure food and drug safety, expand access to health care insurance and enable students and workers to obtain higher education and job training to compete for bigger paychecks in the global economy.

It’s tough to divvy up the budget pie with 535 members of Congress fighting for their state’s “fair share.” Plus, the big spenders like to come back for seconds and thirds. They buy into the fairy tale that raising taxes on the American people will grow the budget pie. In addition, special interests and constituencies from virtually every sector of the economy and region of the country weigh in to shape tax and spending policies that affect their pocketbooks and bottom lines.

Some hire high-priced lobbyists to do heavy-duty influence peddling on Capitol Hill. When the Senate Finance Committee convened the first of two hearings this summer to examine how federal tax rates ought to apply to income from hedge fund partnerships, a swarm of lobbyists had lathered into a frenzy to sway lawmakers and media coverage.

During my remarks at the hearing, I worked to inject reason into an unreasonable display of hysteria. During my tenure as chairman of the tax-writing Finance Committee, I steered through Congress the biggest tax relief laws in a generation. I’m not scouting for ways to reverse course on this successful fiscal policy and raise taxes that would slow economic growth and stall progress chipping away at the federal budget deficit.

That’s right. The tax relief policies I helped shepherd through Congress have unleashed growth in tax revenues. The policy of tax relief works wonders contrary to what the big spenders inWashingtonwant the American people to believe. The tax-and-spend crowd works tirelessly to convinceAmericaof a fictitious notion that Americans are under-taxed.

As a member of the Senate Finance Committee since 1981, I have worked to maintain the integrity of the federal tax code, to give taxpayers certainty and not make changes willy-nilly.

With an explosive rise in the assets being managed inprivate equity and hedge funds structured as partnerships, members of the tax-writing committee have an obligation to debate how the 53-year-old tax law governing partnerships is applied to so-called “carried interest” that is paid out to managers of private equity and hedge fund partnerships.

The merits of lower tax rates on investment income were not under the congressional microscope. At least not at this hearing. But if they were, I would champion the lower rates as a proven, time-tested generator of economic growth and job creation.

The debate surrounding “carried interest” boils down to the distinction between investment income and labor income. As a matter of principle, Congress needs to stay consistent and preserve the integrity of federal tax laws. Like my efforts in 1997 to sort out the 15.3 percent self-employment tax rule as it would apply to cash-rental receipts earned by farmer landlords, I have an obligation to sort out the facts regarding “carried interest” income.

Before Congress moves forward on changes to existing tax policy, it’s necessary to get all the facts out on the table. Let rational debate vet the proposals and allow lawmakers to make informed decisions based on the facts, not irrational sky-is-falling campaigns cooked up byK Streetand Wall Street.

That’s how I’ve always gone about my work at the policymaking tables inWashington. I keep my eyes, ears and mind open. That’s why I remind Iowans at every opportunity to hold up their end of the bargain. Communication is key to representative government.

I look forward to the give-and-take I receive when visiting with my constituents this month. I can always count on the feedback fromMain Streetto help me sort the facts from fiction.