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Thanks to an all-out effort by Oregon CSE activists last week, a sales tax proposal was successfully killed for this session. Activists called, wrote, and emailed state legislators, in addition to testifying at open hearings to express their opposition to the sales tax. This is a great victory for all Oregonians and everyone at CSE would like to thank all those activists that participated in the effort. But our work is far from over.
July 24, 2003
Dear Representative:
On behalf of the 280,000 members of Citizens for a Sound Economy (CSE), I urge you to vote YES on the Davis/Frelinghuysen/Boehner Amendment to the DC appropriations bill H.R. 2765, which will enact the program created by H.R. 2556, the “DC Parental Choice Incentive Act of 2003.”
In 1996, after seeing federal welfare policy fail to help the poor for 60 years, our leaders in Washington decided it was time to try something new. They boldly passed a welfare reform law that ended the legal entitlement to cash handouts, required many to work in order to receive money, and gave states the flexibility to design their own programs.
Recently, Alan Greenspan testified before Congress on growing concerns over natural gas supplies and the potential adverse effects of high energy prices on the recovery of the U.S. economy. Prices have edged upwards and Greenspan notes they are expected to remain high for a while. Some industrial demand has been priced out of the market, and it remains unclear whether this is a temporary phenomenon. The economic impact of energy prices offers a reminder of the importance of energy policy for a strong economy. Yet energy policy remains embroiled in politics, with the Senate struggling to finalize an energy bill that is dominated by special interests rather than economic growth.
North Carolina State House members voted 86 to 23 to put this before the public as an Amendment to the Constitution of North Carolina. Voters will decide in November 2004 whether to let local governments borrow money through a mechanism called "tax increment financing." The financing method allows local governments, without getting the approval of voters, to borrow money for public projects that would benefit private development, such as parking decks, convention centers or similar structures. Taxes generated by the private development would pay off the debt.
When Republicans unveiled the "Contract with America" in 1994. they claimed it would be "the end of government that is too big, too intrusive and too easy with the public's money." Hmm . . . the $400 billion Medicare "reform" that Congress is working on is long on spending, big on government and short on reform.
The Medicare trustees' own estimate for the value of unfunded liabilities, without the new prescription drug benefit, is around $38.3 trillion. That money will have to be paid through either massive tax increases or sharp spending cuts in the future.
When it comes to asbestos litigation, the trial lawyers have gotten out of control. 600,000 plaintiffs and have been sued in asbestos lawsuits, which are expected to take up to $250 billion in total damages. Many of these suits are frivolous, and they are driving innocent firms into bankruptcy. Indeed, asbestos damage awards continue to skyrocket in spite of the fact that the material has not been used since the 1970s.
July 22, 2003
Dear U.S. Representative:
On behalf of the 280,000 members of Citizens for a Sound Economy (CSE), I urge you to vote NO on H.R. 2427, the “Pharmaceutical Market Access Act of 2003.”
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Rep. Jordan will force Congress to help President Trump repeal ObamaCare and drain the DC swamp. Sign the petition to draft Jim Jordan for Speaker now!