U.S. Chamber Of Commerce Sends Obama Its Jobs Plan
Sep 5, 2011 Comments Off Pat Dollard
Looking ahead to the president’s jobs address, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce sent an open letter to the White House and lawmakers Monday identifying measures which it says will boost employment and help stimulate the struggling economy.
Chamber President Thomas Donohue called on the administration and lawmakers to pass pending trade deals, increase spending on infrastructure, ease restrictions on oil drilling and provide temporary tax breaks to corporations.
Proposals from the Chamber may run counter to the White House’s own measures.
The Chamber urged the administration and Congress to reduce tax rates so that corporations may repatriate profits earned overseas. They estimate that a repatriation tax holiday could pump $1.2 trillion into the economy and claim that it would also create 2.9 million jobs.
Liberal groups though have pushed back against proposals for a repatriation tax holiday and Obama has said he will only consider the idea as part of a broader overhaul of the corporate tax code.
Additionally the Chamber called for a reduction in the corporate capital gains tax rate. Many Democrats are reluctant to grant more tax relief without assurances corporations will resume hiring.
The Chamber’s push for rolling back more regulations might also face resistance from some Democrats.
The letter claims that regulatory relief could “begin moving $1 trillion – $2 trillion in accumulated private capital off of the sidelines and into business expansion.”
The Chamber urged the president to issue an executive order directing agencies “not to issue any discretionary regulations that would have a substantial economic impact – until our rates of GDP and employment growth have substantially improved.”
House Republicans have taken up the Chamber’s push for regulatory relief. The GOP will push for passage of the REINS Act when lawmakers return from recess. The act would require all major regulations to get a vote in Congress.
The chamber also called on Washington to streamline visa applications and speed up airport security screening for low-risk travelers, proposals they argue will boost small businesses focused on travel and tourism.
“We’re interested to listen to other ideas that meet the same criteria: Quick, fast, workable, and not costing new money,” Chamber President Donohue said in an interview with the Associated Press.
