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Tuesday, September 2, 2014

You can’t legislate more hours in the day – but here’s something we can do

Sometimes 24 hours isn’t enough. For working families across America, balancing work and home and children and bills and life – is a lot. But this week, House Republicans presented a package of bills  that will make life easier for a lot of people.

Increasing flexibility in the workplace: Unfortunately, there’s no way to add hours to the clock. And, when you have to balance life at work and at home, time becomes valuable. The Working Families Flexibility Act of 2013 gives private-sector employees the ability to use overtime hours for paid time off – as public sector employees can now. This will allow parents to take time off to be with their kids, and go to things like baseball games, mission trips, or school functions.

Increasing take-home pay: Every day costs – on things like gas, groceries, and air costs – are rising, as larger purchases like health care and education are skyrocketing.  For families, this growing financial squeeze can be detrimental. Bills like the Child Tax Credit Improvement Act  and the Student and Family Tax Simplification Act will put more money in the pockets of parents and make planning for future opportunities easier and more affordable.

Rewarding those who work hard: And often, when both parents work, other costs are incurred – like childcare or automobile costs. The Empowering Americans To Work Act was introduced by Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and would amend the tax code to provide a deduction for families with a second income worker, to help make those every day expenses more affordable.

On the other end of the spectrum, sometimes children are left taking care of aging parents. Rep. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) introduced the Families First Act, which updates the dependent care tax credit to match inflation – so that that Americans paying for expensive health care costs for parents or children get the relief they need financially.

Advancing Opportunity in the Workplace: Rep. McMorris Rodgers has introduced a bill that will protect workers who discuss their salaries in the workplace. This bill would strengthen existing laws to help stop discrimination at work everyone, without adding unnecessary mandates and litigation to wage requirements.

Also, by increasing job training programs, all Americans will have access to the skills they need for good-paying job opportunities. Four million jobs are unfilled in the United States, because of a lack of skilled workers to fill the gaps. The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act would connect Americans with the programs they need – while also making the current job-training program more efficient and effective.

 Across America, families are making it work. But sometimes, we all need a little help. These bills have the potential to make life so much easier for so many Americans. As House Republicans, we want to empower all Americans so they can reach their full potential – no matter where they started.


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Monday, September 1, 2014

Rep. Diane Black: The Possibilities of a “Governing Party”

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This week on “Meet the Press,” host David Gregory asked guests their thoughts on a Republican-controlled Senate. Rep. Diane Black (R-TN) responded in “The Hill” by  pointing out the work House Republicans have accomplished, often in bipartisan fashion, compared to the Democratic-controlled Senate.



“On a recent edition of Meet the Press, host David Gregory asked his guest whether Republicans have given voters a reason to vote for them in the fall. He asked whether Republicans have demonstrated that they should control both Chambers of Congress and be “a governing party.”

“When it comes to addressing the most pressing issues facing the American people, the Republican-led House of Representatives has led the charge.

“For instance, while President Obama has recently boasted of a ‘booming’ economy under his watch, Americans continue to feel great anxiety. In fact, 6 in 10 Americans say they are dissatisfied with the state of the economy and 7 in 10 believe our country is headed in the wrong direction.


“Unlike President Obama, House Republicans have not lost touch with these very real economic concerns. That is why we have acted to pass dozens of sensible and bipartisan measures to help our economy grow and help Americans get back to work. In fact, there are currently 43 House passed jobs bills – most of which enjoy bipartisan support — sitting in the Democrat-led Senate just waiting for Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) to schedule a vote.


“These include measures that would create jobs, lower energy prices for hard working Americans, and give relief to the predominantly female and lower income workers hurt by Obamacare, among other measures.

“Our national debt is now over $17.6 trillion – that’s over $55,000 for each American man, woman and child. Yet Obama and Democrats in Washington refuse to get serious about our nation’s fiscal outlook. This year, Obama once again submitted a budget plan over a month late that failed to ever balance even though it called for massive tax increases on the American people. Senate Democrats fared even worse by failing to even introduce a budget plan, let alone pass one with a simple majority vote as required by law.

“On the contrary, I was proud to help once again advance a responsible budget plan with Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and my colleagues on the House Budget Committee. The plan we introduced would bring our books to balance without needlessly harming our economy with painful tax increases like the ones Obama called for. House Republicans responsibly passed this budget plan this past April.

“Most recently, and to answer David Gregory’s question on Meet the Press, only one party in Washington has acted to address the influx of tens of thousands of unaccompanied Central American children who have illegally crossed our southern border. While the Democrat-led Senate recessed for the summer without passing legislation to address this humanitarian crisis, the Republican controlled House of Representatives stayed in Washington and worked until a supplemental border appropriations bill was passed.

“This contrast has been consistent throughout the year, as House Republicans have worked to pass seven different bipartisan appropriations bills to fund government operations for the next year while Senate Democrats have passed none. This behavior by Senate Democrats is not how a governing majority should behave and virtually guarantees unnecessary brinksmanship when lawmakers return to work in September with just weeks before the current appropriations lapse.

“The only party in Washington that is working to govern is the Republican Party, but unfortunately we only control one chamber of one branch of government.”

Read Rep. Black’s column in its entirety at The Hill.

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