Wednesday, January 15, 2003

Unemployed get extended benefits

By MAC COLLINS
Congressman

Last week marked the beginning of the 108th Congress. With 229 Republicans, 204 Democrats, one Independent, and one vacant seat, Representative Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) was elected, and sworn in to serve his third term as speaker of the House of Representatives. Shortly thereafter, the Oath of Office was administered by the Speaker to each newly elected Member of the House and the House Rules for the 108th Congress were adopted. Once again, it is a tremendous privilege to have been elected for a sixth term to represent the people of Georgia in the United States House of Representatives.

Prior to the House adjournment in December 2002, there were a series of organizational meetings to determine party priorities upon our return this past week. During that time I was honored to be selected by my peers in Region 10 (Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, and Mississippi) to represent their interests on the Republican Steering Committee.

The Republican Steering Committee has the responsibility to recommend to the full Republican Conference the positions for committee chairs and members for the standing committees of the House. The 29 members of the Steering Committee include the speaker of the House, majority leader, majority whip, among other party leadership, "exclusive committee" chairmen (Ways and Means, Appropriations, Rules, and Energy and Commerce), and 13 regional representatives.

On our first legislative day back in Congress, I introduced four tax bills to help make American workers more competitive in the global market. The Collins Tax Reform and Worker Assistance package will reform current tax policies which hamper American business and American workers in competition with foreign companies. These tax provisions are a leading source of lost jobs in the American economy.

The largest challenge faced by the American worker is the current tax system in this country. Our tax policies place American businesses, which provide jobs for American workers, at a severe disadvantage to foreign competitors. The tax structure must be changed in ways that reward rather than punish manufacturers who remain in this country and provide U.S. jobs and that cannot happen too soon.

Specifically, the bills will repeal the Alternative Minimum Tax on individuals and corporations, eliminate of the double taxation on stock dividends, reduce the capital gains tax rates, and call for more realistic depreciation schedules for capital expensing.

These changes and other reforms will make the American worker more competitive in the world market. By leveling this playing field we will keep more American jobs in the United States.

On Wednesday, the House of Representatives passed the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002 in a 416 to 4 vote. Shortly after passing the House, President George W. Bush signed the extension of benefits into law.

This legislation extends the unemployment benefits that Congress passed in March 2002. Specifically, it will provide an additional 13 weeks of coverage to all American workers who exhaust their initial 26 weeks of benefits. As a result, all American workers will be eligible for up to 39 weeks of coverage. In addition, in high unemployment states, the bill provides another 13 weeks of coverage for a total of 52 weeks of coverage. This extension will apply to all workers who become eligible for benefits through the end of May 2003.

While this legislation takes the important step of providing a safety net for 2.7 million unemployed workers and their families, it unfortunately does not provide these Americans what they need most jobs to provide for their families. President Bush has introduced an economic growth and job creation plan that would do just that; it would enable more to Americans keep more of their hard-earned money and encourage investment that creates jobs.

Additionally, as a member of the Ways and Means Committee, I have introduced the Collins Tax Reform and Worker Assistance package. I will continue to work with my colleagues to create an economic package that will encourage investment, stimulate economic growth and create jobs which will enable Americans to provide for their families.

On Wednesday, the House of Representatives passed HR 11, which will reauthorize the federal flood insurance program that expired at the end of 2002. The bill would retroactively provide coverage from Dec. 31, 2002, until Dec. 31, 2003. The program provides $26 billion in flood insurance coverage to U.S. homeowners. The program was established in a 1968 housing law (PL 90-448), and it is administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The insurance provides coverage in communities that have instituted flood-plan management and land-use control measures that minimize the risk of flooding and mitigate potential flood damage. Federal law calls for federally insured or supervised banks to require those with mortgages in such areas to carry flood insurance. The bill must now be considered by the Senate.

On Wednesday, legislation to ban cloning of human beings was introduced for consideration in the House of Representatives. Once again, I was proud to offer my strong support as a cosponsor of cloning ban legislation.

Georgians from around the state have let me know, in no uncertain terms, about their opposition to cloning. In December, the Raelian cult claimed that its efforts had led to the birth of the first human clone. While these claims of a cloned child remain highly questionable and unsubstantiated, attempts at manufacturing human beings for both research and reproductive purposes is morally wrong.

Not only does the practice devalue the sanctity of individual life, it also treats human beings as a commodity to be used to meet the desires of others. In animals, cloning often ends in the death of the embryo; and, when it does not end in death, it often leads to severe deformities. Attempts to clone human beings, which are even more complex than animals that have been cloned, will ultimately lead to the killing of human embryos and, potentially, to the creation of severely deformed persons.

In the 107th Congress, with my strong support, the House passed the Human Cloning Prohibition Act of 2001 in a 265 to 162 vote. Unfortunately, the Democratically-controlled Senate failed to act on this important legislation.

I will continue to support efforts to honor the sanctity of life and work to ban all efforts to clone human beings. With a Republican majority in both the House and Senate, it is my hope that the 108th Congress will stop this immoral research and enact a long overdue ban on human cloning.

On Wednesday evening, the House of Representatives extended the Continuing Resolution passed at the end of the 107th Congress to provide funding for the federal government through Jan. 31, 2003. Early in 2002, the House of Representatives successfully passed a budget which established spending limitations for the Fiscal Year 2003 appropriations process. However, during 2002, the Democrat-controlled Senate failed to establish a similar spending blueprint.

The Senate's failure to fulfill this requirement has been a major obstacle in the effort to enact FY2003 appropriation bills aside from the Defense and Military Construction bills. The Congress anticipates concluding deliberations on FY03 funding by the week of Jan. 26, prior to the President's State of the Union address scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 28. In completing the FY03 spending bills the Congress has agreed to comply with the President's desire to maintain fiscal discipline, and will need to cut overall spending by $10 billion. This will serve to benefit the hard-working American taxpayer.

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