Q: What is a congressional “earmark?”
A: The term refers to the widely used, traditional practice lawmakers use to steer tax dollars towards specific projects or programs. The problem is that it’s common for earmarks to circumvent legislative and oversight channels in Congress. I’ve fought hard for Iowa’s fair share when it comes to allocating...
A new year often brings well-intentioned promises to turn a new leaf. Making a resolution to start the year off on the right foot is a ritual shared by many. The same goes for members of Congress.
On the first day of business I put calls for bipartisanship into action. Just as American taxpayers gear up for tax season, I introduced bipartisan legislation...
As a federal lawmaker licensed to steer tax and spending policy through the legislative branch of the federal government, I use my leadership assignments on the tax- and budget-writing committees to keep close tabs on hard-earned tax dollars sent in to the federal treasury.
Although ordinary household budgets pale in comparison to the sheer size of the $2.8...
Q: Why does the federal government impose a tariff on imported ethanol?
A: The import tariff on foreign ethanol sticks to solid principles of U.S. public policy designed to grow America’s energy security, reduce our dangerous dependence on foreign oil and encourage the domestic production of renewable energy. As Iowa’s senior U.S. Senator, I strongly oppose...
Q: What is the Presidential $1 Coin?
A: Many Iowa families have made the U.S. Mint’s popular 50 State Quarters® program an enjoyable learning tool for their children and grandchildren. As a life-long public servant, I’m tickled to observe genuine enthusiasm when kids show their parents a state quarter they haven’t yet seen. It offers a built-in civics lesson...
Q: When can Medicare beneficiaries enroll or change prescription drug providers?
A: From Nov. 15 through Dec. 31, Medicare patients may choose to change their current drug-coverage plans. Administrators are encouraging beneficiaries to enroll by Dec. 8 to ensure the smoothest transition when the new plans activate Jan. 1, 2007. Surveys indicate most...
America’s agricultural abundance launched an historic feast of thanksgiving in 1621 between the colonists and Native Americans. Giving thanks for a plentiful harvest foreshadowed America’s berth as breadbasket to the world. Eventually President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed in 1863 a national day of thanksgiving to observe bountiful harvests and honor good...
The U.S. Constitution grants the power of the purse to federal lawmakers. Article 1, section 8 says Congress “shall have the power to lay and collect taxes…[to] pay the debts and provide for the Defense and general welfare of the United States.”
The federal budget exceeds $2.7 trillion dollars. That’s an astronomical figure compared to family household...
Q: Is assistance available through the USDA to help rural residents make improvements to their homes?
A: Yes. USDA Rural Development invests roughly $100 million annually to provide rural Iowa families with safe, decent and sanitary housing. This includes low-interest loans and grants available to families with modest means to help them make essential home...
For more than ten years, policymakers engaged in extended debate and compromise to forge a bipartisan consensus that would bring fairness and common sense to the nation’s bankruptcy system.
In the 1990s, despite robust economic times, personal bankruptcy filings soared because debtors – assisted by unscrupulous lawyers – could too easily game the system and...
As the calendar zeroes in on Election Day,Iowavoters soon will cast ballots for local officeholders and state legislators. Iowans also must decide on a candidate to fill the vacancy opening up at Terrace Hill.
At the federal level, voters inIowa’s five congressional districts will decide who will represent them in the U .S. House of Representatives for the...
Q: Why did you invite the EPA Administrator to your farm?
A: As the only working family farmer in the U.S. Senate, I make sure the voice of the American farmer is heard at the policymaking tables in Washington, D.C. After the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently issued a final rule to regulate dust emissions, I turned up the volume to make sure...
Q: “What is Family Day: A day to eat dinner with your children?”
A: Launched by theNationalCenteron Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA), this national initiative seeks to motivate parents to develop regular, open lines of communication early on with their children. Hectic family schedules in modernAmericamay seem to make a sit-down family meal...
A new chapter in American history was launched in 2001 when a ring of murderous terrorists hijacked commercial jets and plowed them into New York City skyscrapers and the Pentagon just outside the nation’s capital.
By striking a blow at the heart of America’s financial and government institutions, the ring-leader of the al Qaeda network – Osama bin Laden –...
Students across Iowa are into a new school year. Meanwhile, parents gear up for the hustle and bustle of extra-curricular activities, homework schedules and school events.
Whether sending off a kindergartner to the classroom or a high school senior, all parents share something in common. They want their children to achieve their fullest potential.
For...
Most government reports don’t generate an awful lot of interest from those outside the Beltway. But one recent report by congressional auditors gives the taxpaying public an opportunity to gauge how lawmakers digest budget-making.
The audit by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office shows a smaller-than-projected gap between federal spending and tax...
As I continue my annual road trip across Iowa this summer, I’m rewarded at virtually every stop in each of Iowa’s 99 counties to rediscover the singular trait that makes Iowans stand out.
Iowans take pride in their communities. The schools, fire and police stations, hospitals, libraries and places of worship serve as the civic building blocks that play an...
Q: What changes are in store for 401(k) and 403 (b) retirement plans?
A: Named for the section of the federal tax code that created these popular savings tools, Congress recently updated the law that allows workers to divert a percentage of their paychecks tax-free into these plans to build up savings for their retirement. Unlike company-run defined benefit...
In recent years, corporate fall-outs exposed the vulnerability many workers face by putting all their retirement nest eggs in one basket.
Corporate accounting scandals and bankruptcy-plagued industries, including airlines and steel mills, served as a wake-up call for policymakers to beef up the nation’s pension system to protect the workforce and shield the...
Eight years have passed since the Republican-led Congress masterminded the first balanced federal budget since 1969. As a senior member of the Senate Budget Committee, it sure was wonderful to hand American taxpayers a victory. After nearly 30 years of over-spending in Washington, lawmakers tightened Uncle Sam’s belt and stopped the flow of red ink for three...
