Mike Coffman

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Thank you. Congressman Thompson, there is a great deal of discussion, particularly among seniors, that are very concerned about changes in their health care--is their health care specifically going to be rationed? When we look at the fact we are stripping hundreds of billions of dollars out of Medicare to fund the public option, and the fact that Medicare has solvency problems of its own, it is projected to run out of money in 2017, so then we have a commission. If they revert to the public option, the services that are allowed to be provided in the public option are going to be defined by bureaucrats. It is not going to be about a doctor-patient relationship in terms of what is going to be provided. There is a commission, I believe, that is established to decide what services will be provided in the public option. And seniors are concerned because 25 percent or more of health care is used in the latest stages of life. And so what does that mean for them? And maybe you could address that.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Thank you, Congressman Thompson, and thank you Congressman Bishop. And we had Congressman Lamborn from Colorado, Doug Lamborn earlier, and Congressman Polis as well talked about these issues. I certainly hope that we can have a bipartisan solution on what I think is a very critical issue, and that really needs to involve both parties of Congress in a negotiation that we don't have right now. And I think that's a great tragedy that it hasn't been a bipartisan process. But I believe that there are market-based solutions that will not endanger this economy in terms of creating unemployment through the burdens on small business and driving the deficit and driving the debt of this country beyond what it is today. And from the Republican point of view, thank you.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. In this proposal, that it is not--I think the Congressman well-stated it as to the issues on the income tax and that this is an additional burden, but this is on the payroll tax. This is a payroll tax. This is whether or not the business is profitable. The business could be hit hard, could be stressed, losing money, trying to keep his doors open. If it cannot afford health care, then it will be hit with an 8 percent surcharge of its gross annual payroll. We also have Congressman Rob Bishop. I yield to Congressman Bishop to address this issue.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Thank you, Congressman Thompson. Congressman Lamborn, when we look at this, H.R. 3200, it not only says that there could be up to an 8 percent surcharge on a small business that doesn't have health insurance, the schedule goes to 8 percent if they have adjusted gross wages of $400,000 or more, which isn't a lot for a small business, given the number of employees that it might have, but it also goes beyond that. And it says they have to pay 72.5 percent, at a minimum, of a federally qualified plan under the insurance exchange, and for the family, for a full-time employee, they have to cover about 65 percent. And so what impact is that going to have for your folks in the Fifth Congressional District in Colorado?

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Let me go to Congressman Thompson and then we will go to Congressman Lamborn.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. I yield to my fellow Congressman from the State of Colorado, Mr. Jared Polis.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, we are a Nation at war, and our Commander-in-Chief is more focused on how to engineer a government takeover of our health care system than he is on prosecuting the war in Afghanistan. It is my belief, having read General McChrystal's 65-page report on what is necessary to win this war, that he was pressured by the administration to strip his request for how many troops out of this report. When things were going bad in Iraq in 2007, the Commander-in-Chief then, George W. Bush, turned to his military commander on the ground in Iraq and said, What will it take to turn this situation around? And General Petraeus came up with a plan, came before the Armed Services Committees for the House and the Senate to address what was necessary to turn the tide in Iraq, and he was granted what he requested for. The President needs to allow General McChrystal to give an honest assessment of what it will take to win in Afghanistan, and General McChrystal needs to share that with the Congress of the United States.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Tonight, I am joined by Congressman Doug Lamborn of Colorado and by Congressman Glenn Thompson of Pennsylvania. What we want to talk about tonight is the impact that health care reform, or the Democrat proposal, is having on small businesses throughout this country. It wasn't that long ago that the President's chief economic adviser, Christina Romer, looked at the proposal, H.R. 3200, and said that this could cost up to 5.5 million jobs. So it is important that we talk about why this happens. About $900 billion is the target for the cost of the proposal, of H.R. 3200, with half of it coming from Medicare and with half of it coming from increased taxes, surcharges and penalties. So, with that, let me first refer to my colleague from Colorado, Congressman Doug Lamborn, to talk about the effects of these new taxes, surcharges and penalties on small business.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Will the gentleman yield back just for a moment?

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Congressman Lamborn, let's talk about that whole thing. It starts out at 2 percent. As we know, in looking at section 313 of the bill, when we talk about the gross annual payroll of $250,000 to $300,000, it's at 2 percent. Then it moves up to 4 percent when going to $350,000. Then with $400,000 of gross annual payroll and above, it goes to 8 percent. So it's at 4, 6 and 8 percent. Many small businesses which cannot afford health care insurance are going to be hit with a penalty of 8 percent. Clearly, they're going to have to make a decision: Either they're going to have to reduce that payroll to be able to pay that tax or they're going to have to close their doors--one of the two. I think what Washington doesn't understand is that these small businesses are hanging on by their fingernails right now trying to keep their doors open, and unlike the Congress of the United States, they can't simply print money when they don't have it. So this is putting them in an impossible position. I think, simply, that the liberals in this Congress just don't get it. They're just not understanding the stresses of small businesses in America today, small businesses which have been, historically, the greatest job creators in our economy. I yield back.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. At this time, I would like to recognize Congressman Glenn Thompson from the State of Pennsylvania. Congressman Thompson, what do you think about this issue in terms of H.R. 3200, which is the Democratic bill before the Congress, and its impact on small business in the State of Pennsylvania?

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Madam Speaker, Happy New Year. Today is October first, the start of the 2010 Fiscal Year. That means it is also Fiscal New Year. My short time here in Washington has convinced me that many inside the Beltway are out of touch with the real day-to-day lives of those in the rest of the country. So we should do what many Americans do, and use the New Year as an opportunity to reassess how we are doing, and to make resolutions to improve our behavior. Today, I offer some Fiscal New Year Resolutions for Congress: Number One: Balance the budget. CBO estimates that the 2009 deficit will be 1.6 trillion dollars, and the cumulative deficit over the next ten years will equal 9.1 trillion dollars. Number Two: Lower our debt. Even if we stop deficit spending, we already carry 11 trillion in debt. We should be addressing this burden, not increasing it. Number Three: Act responsibly. We need to make sure Congress can and does read the bills they pass. We need time to study and evaluate them before a vote. Number Four: Study economics. Congress obviously needs some lessons in how markets work. We need to recognize that Government control in what should be the private sector destroys efficiencies. We need to reward success, not bail-out failure. And we need to understand that government competition destroys markets. Madam Speaker, I hope Congress can so resolve.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, in 2007, the Commander in Chief, President George W. Bush, relied on his military commander on the ground to give him an assessment as to what it would take to turn around what was then a very bad situation in Iraq. General Petraeus made his case before the House and Senate Armed Services Committees, and he was given the resources that he requested. The surge in Iraq provided the necessary level of security that ultimately allowed the political process there to move forward. Similarly, General Stanley McChrystal has been charged by the Commander in Chief, President Barack Obama, to give an assessment of what it will take to win in Afghanistan and achieve the objectives that the President had committed to earlier this year. I believe General McChrystal's report was politically sanitized and General McChrystal needs to appear before the House and Senate Armed Services Committees to give an honest assessment of what is going on in Afghanistan.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Madam Speaker, I come to the floor today to commemorate the 220th Anniversary of the United States Marshals Service on September 24, 2009. The U.S. Marshals Service is our Nation's oldest and most versatile federal law enforcement agency. Since its national inception in 1789, the U.S. Marshals Service has served a unique place in America's history. The first U.S. marshal in the Colorado Territory was appointed by President Lincoln and began his service on March 25, 1861. On August 1, 1876, Colorado became the 38th State, which created the Judicial District of Colorado. U.S. marshals and their deputies have served the District of Colorado since with great valor and courage. With their broad statutory law enforcement authority granted by the Judiciary Act of 1789, U.S. marshals and their deputies distributed presidential proclamations, tamed the American West, registered enemy aliens in time of war, helped conduct the national census, protected the President, and served on the front lines of the civil rights movement. More recently, deputy U.S. marshals have been called by Presidential orders and have served valiantly during national emergencies--large-scale natural disasters, hurricanes and to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Today the men and women of the U.S. Marshals Service, District of Colorado, maintain their core mission to serve and protect our Federal courts. They ensure the safe conduct of judicial proceedings and protect Federal judges, jurors, and other members of the Federal judiciary. They provide for the safety and security of protected witnesses through the Witness Security Division. The U.S. Marshals Service also provides for the safe and secure transportation of federal inmates for federal court proceedings and to and from correctional facilities. Additionally, the U.S. Marshals Service is responsible for managing nearly 1.7 billion dollars worth of seized property illegally acquired through criminal means by maintaining and promptly disposing of assets through its Asset Forfeiture Program. Most notably, the U.S. Marshals Service is the federal government's primary agency for conducting fugitive investigations. The men and women of the Marshals Service apprehend more federal fugitives than all other federal agencies combined. Working with law enforcement agencies at the federal, state and local levels, Marshals-led task forces arrested an additional 73,000 state and local fugitives, clearing 90,600 state and local felony warrants. The Marshals currently leads 82 district fugitive task forces and seven regional fugitive task forces dedicated to locating and apprehending wanted criminals. The U.S. Marshals Service has developed close working relationships with other law enforcement agencies on fugitive matters, and provides assistance, expertise and training to agencies on the federal, state, local and international levels. The U.S. Marshals Service is the premier agency to apprehend foreign fugitives believed to be in the United States, and it is the agency responsible for locating and extraditing American fugitives who flee to foreign countries. In closing, Madam Speaker, I would therefore submit that we congratulate the U.S. Marshals Service on their 220th Anniversary for their past and present accomplishments, and that those men and women we recognize wear ``America's Star'' nationally in their selfless dedication to Justice, Integrity and Service.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, the President's mention of a tort reform demonstration project in his speech to Congress last week was a red herring. By putting Secretary Sebelius in charge of evaluating a tort reform demonstration project, the President has left tort reform to the former executive director and chief lobbyist for the Kansas Trial Lawyers Association. The President may have well just said, ``We need to protect the hen house, so I'm appointing the fox to evaluate security.'' Democrats deride the status quo in health care, waving their fingers and blaming special interests, but their rhetoric fails to meet reality. In a moment of extreme candor, Howard Dean, the former DNC chairman, said, The reason why tort reform is not in the bill is because the people who wrote it did not want to take on the trial lawyers, and that is the plain and simple truth. Talk about beholding the special interests. Mr. Speaker, if Democrats were serious about reducing costs and about making health care more affordable without bankrupting our country, they would embrace tort reform. The fact is they just aren't.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, it is unconscionable that Democrat leaders have put forth legislation under the guise of health care reform that will result in the direct loss of 5 million jobs from crippling new pay-or-play taxes on small businesses. Our economy is hurting, and Congress should be creating jobs. The Democrats' health care proposal will do the exact opposite. It will take away jobs. The Democrats have chosen to try to fund a trillion dollar government takeover of our Nation's health care industry in the midst of the worst recession in half a century. Worse than that, they have chosen to make small businesses, long the lifeblood of our economy, bear the brunt of these costs. The simple fact is that the Democrats' rhetoric is deceptive. It does not match the legislation they have proposed. They use words like ``reform'' and ``choice,'' but all their plan does is tax and spend to fund new government mandates. Mr. Speaker, my Democrat colleagues are presenting the American people with a false choice by comparing their proposal with the alternative of doing nothing. We deserve better. We deserve real reform.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, President Barack Obama's chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, reflected on the administration's lack of focus on the economy earlier this year when he said that our Nation's financial crisis presented an opportunity to accomplish agendas unrelated to the economy. A good example of that was the so-called stimulus bill that had nothing to do with helping to save or create jobs in the private sector, but everything to do with expanding government programs and pushing our Nation $787 billion deeper into debt. The Obama administration and the Congress should be focused on one issue and only one issue, and that is stabilizing our Nation's economy so that Americans can keep the jobs they have and get back the jobs they lost. Only when the economy is stabilized should we be debating other issues such as energy policy and health care reform. Mr. Speaker, the American people are hurting, and it's time that our President and the Democrats in Congress stop ignoring their pain and get to work on fixing this economy.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Madam Speaker, on rollcall No. 548, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, soon we will be debating health care reform on the floor of the United States House of Representatives. The goal is to pass legislation before the upcoming August recess. No doubt one of the most significant features of the debate on health care reform will involve what is now known as the ``public option.'' The public option is a government-run health care program. The President has said that anyone who has private health care insurance will be allowed to either keep it or join the government plan. Mr. Speaker, the public option is the first step to a complete government takeover of our private health insurance system. The public option will have advantages by virtue of being a government entity. It will destroy the private health care insurance market, turning the entire system over to a Federal bureaucracy. The Federal Government's record of managing Medicare, Medicaid, and the care of our veterans is one of allowing massive fraud, inefficiencies, and the abuse of patients. Mr. Speaker, our private health insurance is in need of reform, but I would urge my fellow Members of Congress to mend it and not end it.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 421, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Madam Speaker, on rollcall No. 336, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Madam Speaker, I rise today to share my concerns about H.R. 2346, the war supplemental bill. Our troops deserve nothing less than a clean war supplemental bill, free from unrelated spending. We must give our troops the resources necessary to ensure victory in Iraq and Afghanistan. I visited Iraq over the Memorial Day recess, my first trip back since having served there with the United States Marine Corps in al Anbar province. I cannot, with that trip still fresh in my memory, allow the needed support for our troops to be used as the hook to carry unneeded and distasteful spending. The bill now requires the United States to borrow money that we don't have to loan it to the International Monetary Fund. The International Monetary Fund can then loan this money to nations like Iran and Venezuela. Madam Speaker, it is inappropriate to use our troops to cram through overseas bailouts. I will vote against this and ask my colleagues to join me.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor America's entrepreneurs, those distinguished individuals who support our communities, drive innovation, and keep our nation strong. Small businesses bring fresh ideas to the table, develop the resources to meet the demands of an ever-changing world, and make a meaningful impact on our neighborhoods. Entrepreneurs are responsible for providing 60 to 80 percent of all new jobs, giving them the potential to propel rapid economic growth and expand ever-developing fields. Some of the country's largest companies began as start-ups in small offices, homes and garages exploring these new fields. Limited only by their imagination, these firms performed cutting-edge work in emerging industries that have become the very foundation of our society. As our nation and the world face the most difficult economic conditions in decades, entrepreneurs have the potential to lead us back to prosperity. The resiliency and adaptability shown by small businesses in past recessions demonstrate their capability to meet the challenges standing in their way and emerge stronger than ever. America's small businesses will drive the economic recovery from this downturn and our economy will rebound. Times may be tough, but America's entrepreneurial spirit is tougher. To recognize the monumental achievements of our nation's small firms, the Small Business Administration (SBA) has declared May 17-23 as the 46th Annual National Small Business Week. The House Small Business Committee is celebrating all our country's hard-working entrepreneurs by saluting the Heroes of Small Business, those men and women who have shown the strength, leadership, and resourcefulness that keeps our economy moving forward. I ask that you, Madam Speaker, and the entire U.S. House of Representatives join me in recognizing and thanking Mr. Stephen Reister for his tremendous accomplishments on behalf of small businesses. Mr. Reister has been with Steel-T Heating and Air Conditioning for nearly 20 years, joining the company after it was purchased by his family in 1989. The company is one of the leading heating and air conditioning contractors in the Denver and northern Colorado area. Mr. Reister's contributions to the industry have earned him a place on the national furnace PID team for Carrier Corporation, the world's leader in heating and cooling solutions, and several awards for raising awareness and sales of more environmentally friendly products. Mr. Reister is an active member of his community, serving as a board member of the Columbine Valley Water and Sanitation District. He is also involved in community organizations including the Colorado Fellowship of Christian Athletes CMT Board and The Gift of Warmth Program. Madam Speaker, Mr. Reister has exemplified the remarkable accomplishments of which America's entrepreneurs are capable. This week, he will testify before the House Small Business Committee to share his story. I ask that you and the entire U.S. House of Representatives join with me in honoring him for the extraordinary work he has done for the small business economy. His efforts demonstrate that if given the right resources, America's small businesses can be the catalysts that lift our economy from the current downturn and put us on the road to recovery.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, millions of Americans are hurt by identity theft every year. My legislation, the Social Security Number Fraud and Identity Theft Prevention Act of 2009, H.R. 2472, will enable the Social Security Administration to work with the Department of Homeland Security in searching for records to identify individuals and employers who are using false names, false Social Security numbers, multiple individuals using the same Social Security number, the fraudulent use of Social Security numbers taken from dead people, and individuals who had applied and received a Social Security number but who are not legally entitled to work in the United States. According to the most recent national survey by the Federal Trade Commission, 8.3 million adults in the United States were victims of identity theft and 1.8 million adults in the U.S. reported their personal information fraudulently used by somebody else. This legislation, H.R. 2472, will end a bureaucratic loophole that keeps Federal agencies from cooperating in the fight against identity theft. I strongly urge its passage.

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado

Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, I stand before you today to express my strong support for this important piece of legislation. As a member of the House Armed Services Committee, and a member of the Acquisition Reform Panel, I was honored to be appointed to this Conference Committee. As an active participant on the panel, I appreciate this opportunity to help ``fix'' an obviously flawed defense acquisition system. My emphasis on the Panel has been how to achieve the best use of taxpayer dollars to provide the right equipment, at the right time for our marines, soldiers, sailors, and airmen. Maintaining a strong national defense, while maximizing taxpayer dollars, and reining in out of control cost growth in the development of major weapons systems. As a combat veteran, I realize from personal experience just how critical a well-functioning acquisition system is to our nation's servicemembers--especially our warfighters in the field. We must always fully take the ``end user'' into account whenever we address the acquisition process and to this end, I was pleased my amendment giving the Combatant Commanders a more defined role and input into the process was included. This legislation institutes a much- needed level of focus and precision regarding the input sought from Combatant Commanders to best inform the Joint Requirements Oversight Council as to whether a new program is truly needed and what its benefit to the warfighter will be. Such precise input aims to prevent the DOD from going down the road of spending billions of dollars on unnecessary programs of no real value to those in the field. S. 454 addresses acquisition organization, oversight of cost estimation, performance assessment, and weapons acquisition oversight, and fully takes into account the current problems within the Department of Defense Acquisition process. I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this well-crafted and critical piece of legislation.