Newsletter - Barletta Bulletin 8/4/13

Statement

As you may know, Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee brought an epic 500-year flood to the Susquehanna River basin and other parts of Pennsylvania in 2011. Our communities faced devastation unlike anything we've ever experienced. People lost everything: their jobs as local businesses closed, their homes and property, and their prized possessions and family keepsakes, which were destroyed and gone forever.

Despite all this devastation, I witnessed our community's citizens come together with hope and determination to repair the destruction from the flood. Even with these efforts, I realized our federal government must provide a better response to natural disasters.

To protect victims of natural disasters, I recently introduced the Disaster Loan Fairness Act of 2013 (H.R. 2857). If enacted, this legislation will cut the market-based interest rate on Small Business Administration (SBA) loans for borrowers with no credit available elsewhere in half, to three quarters for borrowers with credit available elsewhere, and cap the interest rate at 4 percent. It also requires the SBA to report to Congress in one year on the progress of these changes.

I believe there should be a more affordable avenue to recovery for homeowners, renters, and small business, our economic engines of growth. More attractive SBA loans are one way to help them.

Overall, we ought to be able to help Americans facing flood disaster first, instead of sending $215 million to Pakistan for flood relief at a zero percent interest rate on a no-payback loan.

Congress Puts America's Students First

On July 31, 2013, the House passed the Bipartisan Student Loan Certainty Act (H.R. 1911), which was great news, in that the Senate finally acted. This legislation will allow student loan interest rates to reset once a year by the market, but lock into a fixed rate once the loan is disbursed to the student, providing stability to borrowers that their interest rates will not change as they enter repayment.

Additionally, the legislation will retroactively apply to any loans disbursed between July 1, 2013 and the date of enactment. Specifically, interest rates would be set using the following formulas:

- Undergraduate Stafford Loans (subsidized and unsubsidized): 10-year Treasury Note plus 2.05 percent, capped at 8.25 percent.
- Graduate Stafford loans: 10-year Treasury Note plus 3.6 percent, capped at 9.5 percent
- PLUS loans (graduate and parent): 10-year Treasury Note plus 4.6 percent, capped at 10.5 percent.

This is great news for students and their parents as they move forward in financing higher education. Though interest rates did double on July 1st, the fact that the Senate has now compromised with the House means those rates will now come back down. This plan will help remove politics from student loan programs by keeping Congress out of the process. It is a shame that it took the Senate nearly a month to act on legislation the House passed in May, but the bill is now on its way to the president's desk, and for that we can be grateful.

Protecting America's Workers

On July 16, 2013, I spoke on the House floor to ask the simple question in the immigration debate: when so many are focused on the 11 million illegal immigrants in our country, who is looking out for the 22 million Americans who woke up this morning unable to find a job?

If we legalize millions of new residents, citizens already here will have to compete even harder for jobs and resources that are already scarce. This is an extreme disservice to those immigrants who have followed the law and are trying to improve their lives and the lives of their families, as well as, the 22 million Americans who wake up each morning unable to find work.
I will continue to work with my colleagues to ensure fair immigration policy that respects the hardworking American taxpayer, economic growth, and those who follow the law.

Legislative Update
Letters Sent to:

- President Obama urging him to discontinue his war against coal, specifically highlighting the impact on Appalachian states and recognizing that his proposal to curb emissions will prevent construction of new coal-fired plants and likely shutdown existing ones. This is detrimental to the economy, national security, and energy consumers.
- The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) urging the FDA to fully implement the rare diseases requirements in the Food and Drug Administration Safety and Innovation Act (FDASIA).
- U.S. Trade Representative and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture emphasizing the importance of securing open access to dairy markets in Canada, New Zealand, and Japan in the continued negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
- U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services opposing the president's proposal to increase the Medicare reimbursement threshold for Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities from 60 percent to 75 percent, and other reductions in payments.

Cosponsored Legislation:

- Save American Workers Act (H.R. 2575), which would change the hourly classification for a full-time employee for purposes of the employer mandate in Obamacare from 30 hours to 40 hours.
- School Access to Emergency Epinephrine Act (H.R. 2094), which encourages schools to plan for severe allergic reactions by providing funding for asthma-treatment grants if states meet certain requirements. On July 30, 2013, the House passed H.R. 2094.
- No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act (H.R. 7), which would prohibit taxpayer money from being used to fund abortion.
- Preserving Our Hometown Independent Pharmacies Act of 2013 (H.R. 1188), which would allow independent community pharmacies to collectively negotiate the terms and conditions of insurance contracts they must sign, typically with pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) that administer prescription drug plans.
- CLEAR Act of 2013 (H.R. 2264), which provides for enhanced federal, state, and local assistance in the enforcement of immigration laws and authorizes appropriations to carry out the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program.
- Collectible Firearms Protection Act (H.R. 2247), which allows the importation of certain firearms listed as curios or relics into the United States by a licensed importer.
- Hunting, Fishing, and Recreation Shooting Protection Act (H.R. 322), which would prevent the Environmental Protection Agency from regulating shot, bullets, and any sport fishing equipment.
- Veterans Dog Training Therapy Act (H.R. 183), which would establish a pilot program in the Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers for educating veterans with mental health conditions in the art and science of assistance dog training and handling.
- Death Tax Repeal Act of 2013 (H.R. 2429), which would repeal the estate tax, commonly known as the death tax, and make the 35 percent maximum gift tax rate permanent with a $5 million lifetime gift tax exemption.
- Traditional Cigar Manufacturing and Small Business Jobs Preservation Act of 2013 (H.R. 792), which would amend the law to clarify the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's jurisdiction over certain tobacco products and promote the protection of jobs and small businesses involved in the sale, manufacturing, and distribution of traditional and premium cigars.
- H.Res. 30 expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the United States Postal Service should take all appropriate measures to ensure the continuation of its 6-day mail delivery service.

Important Vote: Keep the IRS Off Your Healthcare Act (H.R. 2009)

On August 2, 2013, the House passed the Keep the IRS Off Your Healthcare Act of 2013 (H.R. 2009), with my support. H.R. 2009 prohibits the Secretary of the Treasury from enforcing Obamacare, effectively removing the authority of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to police the healthcare law.

At a time when we have become wary of the IRS because of political targeting of non-profit groups, people are right to question the wisdom of giving even greater authority to agents to enforce the burdensome healthcare law. There is a shortage of jobs everywhere in this country, it seems, except at the IRS where they have hired thousands of new agents to force people to pay for a healthcare law they neither trust nor want.

The IRS is perhaps the most powerful and feared federal agency. We shouldn't have IRS agents persecuting people based on their healthcare decisions. Sadly, the confidence the American people have in their government has eroded over time, and a significant contributor to that is the reality that government often goes too far, meddles in their lives and wields too much power.

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