Taxes and Spending

Many Americans are struggling in what feels like an economic recession.  Christopher wants to restore economic growth and help those affected by the recent economic downturn.  He believes we can do both by putting more money into programs that help our urban areas, such as education, public health and transportation, and pay for it by slowing the growth of spending in defense and entitlements, both of which have experienced huge growth.

 

Christopher is a budget hawk and has been throughout his 21 years in Congress.  He is working to limit the growth of government, cut wasteful federal spending, reduce taxes for families, create jobs, and move power, money and influence out of Washington and back to local communities.

 

The fact is, we don’t have a revenue problem in Washington.  We have a spending problem.  Congress should be required to live within the budget, which is one reason Christopher supports restoring pay-as-you-go rules and sequestration, which enforce the blueprints that have been laid out, with the force of law.

 

Christopher supports tax relief and voted to extend the capital gains and dividends tax relief until 2010.  This legislation also protected millions of middle-class Americans from a tax increase by extending the exemption for paying the alternative minimum tax.

 

Over the past few years, Christopher has voted to eliminate the marriage penalty, reduce the estate tax, double the child tax credit, cut income taxes across-the-board, increase small business write-offs, increase the contribution limits for individual retirements accounts (IRAs) and 401(k) pension plans, and make college tuition payments tax-deductible.  He is also an original cosponsor of the Hope for Children Act, which doubles the adoption tax credit from $5,000 to $10,000.

 

Christopher believes we need to make it a priority to eliminate the alternative minimum tax and enact comprehensive tax reform in the next Congress.  We have successfully moved many lower-income individuals off the tax rolls altogether, but the middle class is being asked to pay a larger share of the tax burden, and it’s time we reverse this trend.

 

The Balanced Budget Amendment is one way to ensure we do not pass our spending excesses onto the next generation.  Christopher supports this amendment because it will require Congress to balance its budget each year just like our state and local governments.  The only exception would be if the United States is at war, as declared by Congress.

 

Christopher is also an original cosponsor of the Legislative Line Item Veto Act, which would give the President authority to strike discretionary spending from any appropriations bill upon his signing it into law.  The line item veto will hold the President and Congress accountable for what they spend and how they spend it.

 

In addition, Christopher is a senior member of the Financial Services Committee.  In this capacity he has worked to restore faith in our market economy by helping to pass corporate accounting, disclosure and bankruptcy reforms.  Through this Committee, Christopher is working on restoring faith in our housing and banking systems, which have been shaken by subprime loans in so many ways.