Dahlonega-Lumpkin County Chamber of Commerce

Dear Friends,

President Obama has demanded that Congress finish comprehensive health care reform legislation and all eyes will be on the U.S. House this weekend as Democratic leaders there are expected to call for a vote on Sunday. The President has urged Congressional Democrats to use the process known as budget reconciliation, which means legislation can be adopted by a simple majority in both chambers, thereby avoiding a Republican filibuster in the Senate.  In order to pass the legislation through the reconciliation process, House Democrats will also have to approve the deeply flawed, unpopular health care reform bill that was passed in the Senate on Christmas Eve without my support. I will continue to oppose this effort by the Democrats to impose a massive government takeover of your health care.

As of this writing, it appears the House Democrats plan to try to use the budget reconciliation process to make major policy changes to the health care bill that have nothing to do with revenue or spending. I have joined with all of my Republican colleagues in the Senate to say that we will fight that effort every step of the way. The budget reconciliation process may only be used for changes that are budget-related -- meaning they affect revenue or spending. Changes involving strict policy matters that do not have a budgetary impact cannot be addressed through reconciliation. The reconciliation process was never intended for comprehensive policy changes, and I believe this fast-track process ignores the will of most Georgians and most Americans, who have expressed strong, vocal opposition to this health care bill.

On Sunday the House is expected to vote on passage of the Senate bill as well as a reconciliation package making changes to the Senate bill. The legislation includes $644 billion in tax increases and over $525 billion in Medicare cuts for seniors. As a result, most Americans will likely see a 10 percent to 13 percent increase in individual premiums.

Democrats cannot hide the fact that when you're raising the type of revenues in this bill, that money is ultimately going to be paid by the consumer. Any time government raises taxes, it raises the cost of living for the American people. At a time when many Americans are still struggling in a difficult economy, this is unconscionable.

Congress should start over with a step-by-step process that includes increasing coverage of preventative and wellness care, which will help control the cost of managing chronic diseases and drive down the cost of treating largely preventable conditions. We can all agree on the need to eliminate insurance coverage rejection due to pre-existing conditions and cancellation due to developing a condition. It is also vital that we enroll all of those already eligible for Medicare, Medicaid and State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) in those programs.

Finally, we should repeal the prohibition of insurance sales across state lines to increase portability and competition as well as allow small businesses to pool together to form association health plans. These are the keys to expanding access to health insurance.

Jobs Bill
This week, the Senate passed H.R.2847, the Jobs bill. I voted against this $16 billion bill for three reasons. One, I had concerns over the centerpiece of the bill, which exempts employers from paying the 6.2 percent Social Security payroll tax this year on newly hired workers who have been unemployed for 60 days or more. It also provides an additional $1,000 tax credit for workers retained for at least a year. The cost of these provisions is $13 billion.

Since 1984, Social Security has collected more in payroll taxes than it has paid out in benefits, accumulating a $2.5 trillion trust fund. However, Social Security's annual surplus nearly evaporated in 2009 as the recession led hundreds of thousands of workers to retire or claim disability. As a result, the Social Security Administration believes tax increases, spending cuts or new borrowing will be required to make up the difference between taxes collected and benefits owed in the coming years. I do not believe now is the time to pass legislation that would further reduce Social Security. I also have concerns that this bill contained no requirement for employers to verify the legal status of these new hires.

Second, the legislation reauthorizes the highway trust fund to use gasoline taxes to help state and local governments pay for highway and transit projects through the end of 2010. It deposits an additional $20 billion into the trust fund. I believe we must first address the fundamental flaws in the Highway Trust Fund funding mechanism before putting more money into it.

Finally, the legislation expands the Build America Bonds program to subsidize the interest costs of bonds to include certain school and energy projects. The cost of this provision is $2.3 billion. I believe it is irresponsible for the federal government to be subsidizing the interest on bonds for city and state projects when the federal government cannot afford its own debt, which is currently $12.4 trillion.

2010 Census
The U.S. Census, which is the counting of the U.S. population, is conducted every 10 years by the Commerce Department. Its results determine the redrawing of congressional districts as well as the composition of the Electoral College.

The Constitution requires a physical head count, which entails going door-to-door, and this is the process I support.  I would not support the use of a “sampling” process to complete the count. Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution provides for an "actual enumeration" and a statute passed by Congress provides that the duties under this clause are to be performed by the Secretary of Commerce.

The U.S. Department of Commerce is also coordinating a separate, longer questionnaire program. The American Community Survey runs several pages and asks detailed questions designed to help cities, counties and states allocate resources more efficiently. Each year approximately 3 million households in the United States and Puerto Rico are selected to participate.

By law, the results of both the official U.S. Census and the American Community Survey are kept strictly confidential and at no time will anyone be asked to provide information with which you can be personally identified. In addition, no government agencies outside the U.S. Census Bureau will have access to anyone’s personal answers at any time.

Participation in both the official U.S. Census and the American Community Survey is required by law. If you choose not to answer questions or provide false answers for either survey, federal law says you shall be fined no more than $100.

If you have any questions or concerns on the matter, the U.S. Census Bureau can be reached at (301) 763-3691 or on the internet at http://2010.census.gov/2010census/. For more information about the American Community Survey, visit http://www.census.gov/acs/www/.
                          
What’s on Tap?
                                                       
Next week, the Senate will resume consideration on HR 1586, the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill. 

Sincerely,

Johnny Isakson