Washington, DC - With a bipartisan vote of 57 to 43, the U.S. Senate today passed a $792 billion tax relief package. Sen. Chuck Grassley is a senior member of the tax-writing Finance committee, where he helped to develop the tax-relief bill. He made the following remarks regarding the vote:
"The tax bill passed by the U.S. Senate reflects the obligation and opportunity we have to return tax dollars to working men and women, while preserving important government programs. The bill delivers tax fairness by eliminating the marriage penalty, reducing health care costs, expanding pension plans, and making long-term care insurance more affordable. The bill reserves two-thirds of the $3.4 trillion budget surplus for Social Security and debt reduction. It also sets aside $505 billion for Medicare and other domestic spending.
"During the next ten years, the federal treasury is expected to collect 22.8 trillion dollars. The Republican tax cut is a mere three-and-a-half percent of that 23 trillion dollars. Taxes have never been as high as they are today. Our bill puts them back at a reasonable place in history. Since 1993, the federal tax burden has risen to 21 percent of the gross domestic product. Before the Clinton administration, taxes had stayed around 18 percent since World War II.
"The plan approved by the Republican-led Senate will pay down $200 billion more on the federal debt than the President's plan. What's more, President Clinton's budget spends $30 billion of the Social Security surplus and would raise taxes by $100 billion. The bill passed today protects every dollar of the Social Security trust fund.
"The debate this week was about whether the federal bureaucracy will spend more money or whether American families will have more money to spend. My view is the taxpayers deserve their slice of the budget pie."