[Nfbmd] {Disarmed} Fw: Mail from website

[Kenneth Chrane]

 ?letterdate ?
----- Original Message ----- 
From: Senator Ben Cardin - Do not reply to this message 
To: kenneth.chrane at verizon.net 
Sent: Friday, January 18, 2013 2:56 PM
Subject: Re: Mail from website


 

Dear Mr. Chrane: 

 

Thank you for contacting me with your views on the "fiscal cliff." I agree with you that the scheduled middle class tax increases and across-the-board spending cuts that made up the cliff would have led to long-term instability for American families and businesses. I am pleased that Congress came together in a bipartisan fashion to pass legislation to avoid these negative consequences. At the same time I am disappointed the agreement is limited in scope. 

 

The American Taxpayer Relief Act, which became law on January 2, 2013, kept income taxes low for the middle class and is expected to grow the economy. Specifically, this Act kept tax rates low on every family's income below $450,000. It also permanently fixed the Alternative Minimum Tax so that it only applies to the upper income taxpayer, as intended when such tax was enacted. Additionally, the Act extended important anti-poverty tax provisions for low-income Americans. On the spending side, the Act included a two month postponement of "sequestration"-the $1.2 trillion in automatic across-the-board spending cuts that were to take effect on January 1, 2013-which was paid for by a combination of revenue and spending cuts. 

 

I am hopeful that Congress will work together in the coming weeks and months to pass a larger budget agreement that will put us on a path to a sustainable budget. I believe we need to take a balanced approach with respect to spending reductions and revenue increases in order to get our nation back on a more fiscally sustainable track. I also believe that a deficit reduction plan should focus on protecting the middle class, eliminating government waste, fostering growth, and investing in our industries. 

 

Please be assured that as a member of the Senate Finance Committee, I will continue to work to address these issues. Thank you again for taking the time to share your views with me and please do not hesitate to contact me in the future regarding this or any other matter of interest to you.  

 


Please visit my website at http://cardin.senate.gov/contact/newsletter/ to sign up for my e-newsletter.  
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