Newsletter: View from the Capitol - Congresswoman Hartzler's Weekly Newsletter for the Week of April 13-17, 2015

Statement

Dear Friend,

This week, I was pleased to meet with Kathryn Beasley of the Military Officer's Association (MOAA) and Wynne Krell of the Missouri Chapter of MOAA. Like me, these patriots are working to make sure that our brave men and women who choose to serve are well taken care of so that we can continue to have the best military in the world. I appreciate and welcome their insight into those issues affecting our service members.

On Friday I also had the opportunity to meet with the Cass County Coalition of Chambers for breakfast and to discuss some of the legislative issues that we have been working on in Washington. We discussed the initiatives I have been pushing to rein in burdensome regulations and red tape, providing certainty so we can grow the economy and create jobs. We also discussed the importance of getting our priorities straight in Washington, like making sure that our government provides for a strong national defense. The administration has a bad habit of overregulating business, stifling job creation, and focusing on issues it has no business dealing with. I commend the mayors, city officials, small business owners, and civic leaders who attended for the great work they are doing making Cass County a great place to live.

This week the House also passed bills aimed at getting the government off the backs of taxpayers, reforming the institutions that serve them, and holding the IRS accountable, including legislation to repeal the Death Tax. With almost 80,000 pages, the length and complexity of our tax code is preposterous. One thing is clear: Americans deserve a fairer, simpler tax code.

As I mentioned, the House passed H.R. 1105, the Death Tax Repeal Act of 2015, removing one of the biggest problems facing hard-working American families. The simple truth is that the Death Tax is one of the major burdens confronting farmers and small businesses.

I recently visited Vit-a-Zine, a family business in Butler, Missouri that develops and sells nutritional supplements for livestock. Rusty Ross, Vit-a-Zine's President, inherited the company from his father, who started it almost 55 years ago. Rusty experienced the Death Tax first-hand when he first inherited the company, being forced to fork over almost $400,000 to the IRS and going through three rounds of audits.

Now, if Rusty wanted to pass the business on to his sons, they would again be hit with an astronomical Death Tax. This tax would most likely force them to sell equipment, leaving them unable to make more products; or sell land and buildings, leaving them unable to house the product they produce. The Death Tax is an attack on businesses like Vit-a-Zine. It is unconscionable that Americans who inherit the family farm or small business are forced to sell their land or business because they cannot afford to pay death taxes. It was long overdue for repeal, and I am proud to have supported this measure in Congress.

Also this week, I introduced legislation to bring some needed reforms to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Stemming from the concerns many of you raised as we recovered from the devastating floods of 2013, my bill aims to foster more open communications between FEMA's disaster response operations and those communities struggling with the aftermath of a major disaster. By providing more transparency, increased consistency, and ultimately, better assistance during the recovery phase, Missourians will know what is going on and be confident that relief is on its way.

Lastly, I wanted to make sure you were aware of some of the services my office can help with. If you can't get an answer from a federal agency in a timely fashion, my office may be able to help resolve a problem or get you the information you need. While we cannot guarantee you a favorable outcome, we will do our best to help you receive a fair and timely response to your problem. Be sure to tell your friends and family that my office is here to serve you!

Visit my website by clicking here, or call my office at (202) 225-2876 to get the process started!

Have a great week!

Sincerely,

Vicky Hartzler
Member of Congress

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