John Hoeven

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I am pleased to follow my esteemed colleague from West Virginia. I wish to join her in her comments and emphasize what she emphasized so well--that this really is all about hard-working taxpayers across this country, not just in terms of making sure they keep more of their hard-earned dollars after taxes but making sure that their wages and income go up. Over the last decade, we have seen real stagnation in terms of wages and income. So as we work on this tax package, we want to make sure that across all income groups, we see real tax relief. The other aspect of this bill is that it is pro-growth. It is about stimulating investment across this country by entrepreneurs, by innovators, by small companies--and, with big companies, bringing money from overseas back home to America, to create jobs in America. As we create those jobs, that competition for labor pushes wages and salaries higher. So it really is a two-for. It is about real tax relief for hard-working Americans, and it is about making sure that their wages and income go up. These are just some of the estimates that have been put forward so far as to the impact that this tax relief package will have. According to the Council of Economic Advisers, there will be $4,000 in higher wages. So that is what I am talking about. It is not just tax relief; it is about higher wages. For an average family of four--median income, average family of four--there will be a savings of $2,200 in taxes. That is from the nonpartisan Tax Foundation. So it is the combination of both of those things: higher wages, lower taxes. It comes from creating more jobs. The estimate is, again from the Council of Economic Advisers, almost 1 million more jobs. It is those jobs that not only create opportunity, but that competition for workers is what pushes those wages higher. Also, a 3.7-percent larger economy--that larger economy is a very important consideration, as well, because by growing the base, even with lower taxes, you generate more revenue, more revenue for the government to invest in our priorities and to reduce the debt and deficit over time. Of course, we have to find savings where we can, but at the same time we have to have economic growth to address debt and the deficit, and that is exactly what we create, not just through tax relief but the combination of tax relief and the regulatory relief that we have done through the course of this year. It is that regulatory relief and that tax relief that really empower our small businesses across the country, which are really the backbone of our economy. We are talking farmers, ranchers, small businesses of all kinds. We are talking entrepreneurs. We are talking innovators. We are talking about the job creators in this country, creating more jobs and opportunity, and the wage earners and the workers benefiting through lower taxes and higher wages. This next chart shows that the tax relief really comes across all income groups. That is something that obviously has been discussed, and that is what we are doing here. We are making sure that across every single income group, there is a tax cut. So the effort is to focus on lower income, middle-income workers, but to make sure that there is tax relief across all groups. The way we focus on lower income workers is by increasing the standard deduction. We more than double the standard deduction from about $6,000 today to $12,000 for an individual. So for a married couple, that is $24,000. For a single individual who has dependents whom he or she is taking care of, whether those are children or maybe a parent or a relative, it is $18,000 for an individual. Now, with that higher standard deduction, we will find that 9 out of 10 people will not itemize. They will not itemize. That means their tax return will be one page. They can complete it on one page. It is simple, easy, and then they can send it in. That is 9 out of 10 filers with this new higher standard deduction. It not only makes sure we provide relief to low- and middle-income taxpayers, but it makes it much simpler to fill out that tax return. At the same time, we keep other deductions and exemptions that are very important to people. For example, the child tax credit is doubled. The child tax credit goes from $1,000 to $2,000. We are doubling the child tax credit. To help with college, we make sure people can open a 529 savings account so they can save money for college and for the education of their young people. Businesses will be encouraged to provide paid family and medical leave by receiving a tax credit to partially offset the pay of an employee who is caring for a child or a family member. Other important deductions that we continue--the mortgage interest deduction. That is very important. We continue the deductibility of the mortgage interest on your home. We continue that very important and very popular tax deduction. We continue the deductibility of charitable contributions. For charitable organizations that need those contributions to continue to fund their important activities, we continue that tax deductibility. We continue the child and dependent tax care credit, the adoption tax credit, the earned-income tax credit to help families with children, working families with children. We continue the 401(k) retirement deduction. That was one that had been discussed, and there was concern expressed that that might be reduced, and we didn't. We continue the deductibility of medical expenses. For example, seniors or others who may have a lot of medical expenses can continue to deduct the cost of those medical expenses. In all these cases, we have worked very hard to make it simpler and to make sure that for low- and middle-income workers, we are providing that tax relief. This next chart goes to what we call passthroughs. As I mentioned earlier, the heart and soul of our economy are small businesses. We want to make sure that we are providing tax relief for small businesses across this country so that they can invest, create more jobs, and hire more workers. For larger businesses or businesses that are multinational, what we are doing is making our Tax Code competitive. What that does is that creates an incentive for the larger companies to bring capital back home that is currently overseas, invest it in America, and create jobs in America. That is called repatriation. Leading economists estimate that there is more than $2.5 trillion that U.S. corporations have overseas that they would bring back home, bring back to America with this tax relief, and invest in America. That is all about them building plants at home, creating jobs at home, creating American jobs, rather than investing somewhere else in the world. That not only creates jobs and more opportunity--again, that push for higher wages and income--it also brings back revenue that helps pay for this tax cut for the individuals and for smaller companies as well. When they come back and invest here, that generates tax revenue in America rather than somewhere else, in some other country. We want the larger multinationals to come back and invest in America. For our smaller companies, our passthroughs, we want to make sure they have the ability, through regulatory relief and tax relief, to expand and grow their businesses. That is what you see here. With the work we have done for small businesses across every income group, small businesses are getting a tax break. The reason it is done across income groups is that passthroughs are taxed at the individual level. So whether it is a sub S corporation or a partnership or a limited liability partnership or a limited liability corporation, the income earned by those small businesses is passed through to the owners and the investors, and then it is taxed at that individual level. So what we show is, across the board, those small businesses are keeping more of their money so they can put it in plant and equipment rather than send it to the Federal Government. I am going to go through some of the things that we have either kept or added for small businesses, particularly some, for example, in the ag area, which is very important to my State, but things that we have kept that really help all small businesses. They include, first, lowering the rate. We start by lowering the rate. Across every income group, we lower that tax rate. The House plan has four different tax rates. We have seven different tax rates, which compares to the seven that we have right now, but we drop them all. We reduce each one of those rates. That is important to understand because that is the objective. We want to make sure that tax relief is provided across the board. There has been some discussion about, well, does that create more complexity in terms of having seven different tax rates the way we do today? Really, it doesn't. The complexity in determining what you have to pay in taxes comes from calculating your taxable income. That is what we have greatly simplified, as I described earlier. By keeping the seven tax rates, we make sure we provide an income break across every different income group, every different business group. Again, this is about providing tax relief. It starts with lowering, obviously, those rates for businesses. We also provide other very important incentives for investment. Remember, this is about pro-growth investment to grow the economy and increase wages. One of those is expensing. That is very important. When a business puts out cash to invest in plant and equipment, they are out those dollars. If they can't deduct that expense up front, it is a lot harder for them to make that expenditure. For the first 5 years, we provide full expensing. That is incredibly important. Whether it is a farm in my State of North Dakota or a small business in my colleague's State of North Carolina, if they can write off that expense--that plant, cattle, equipment, whether it is new farm machinery or any kind of business equipment--then they are able to make that investment and grow their business. We not only provide that full expensing for the first 5 years--with a stepdown over the next 4--on a permanent basis, we keep section 179 expensing, which is a very popular investment incentive for small business. That ensures that small businesses can expense up to $1 million a year in plant and equipment, and it doesn't start phasing out until they get over $2.5 million in expenditures. On a permanent ongoing basis, that provides incredible certainty for the millions of small businesses across this country to keep investing--buying new plants, new equipment, growing their business--and that is the absolute backbone of our economy and job creation. Those are the kinds of provisions that make such a huge difference for our companies and that we have included in this tax relief package. Where are we in the process? We have moved our bill through the Senate. The House has moved their bill through the House. Now we are headed for conference. We need to continue to work to get the best possible product and pass it on the floor, and our objective is to get that done before the end of the year. This process is important. I am going to mention a couple of things in closing here that show the importance of this process--moving it through the Senate, moving it through the House, and working in conference committee to get the very best product we can for the American people. For example, as we have moved this package through Senate, one of the things we added that I think is incredibly important is that you can deduct up to $10,000 in property tax. On your homestead, if you have property taxes up to $10,000, we have now included that in the Senate package. That is a very popular deduction that is important to many people. We added it in the Senate. The House has it. This is going to come out of conference and include that property tax deduction. I think it is very important and very helpful to getting a good tax relief package. Another one that I worked on directly is making sure that car dealers and implement dealers--these are small businesses across the country-- can continue to deduct the interest on their floor plan. So for their cars on the lot, the inventory that you go and look at when you buy a car, or, if they are in the ag business, the tractors and the equipment they have--they can deduct that interest. That is incredibly important for them to be able to do business. That has been added as we have advanced this package. Another provision is IC-DISC. It sounds complicated, but it is simply an incentive for companies that will export. Big companies do a pretty good job of exporting, and they have a lot of ways to do it, but for small companies, when they are making product in our country and are trying to send it to Australia or somewhere else, that is a tough proposition. We give them help through that IC-DISC program. Again, that is another example of how we targeted some of these tax deductions to small businesses or kept some of these programs that really help small businesses and, again, make this package as pro-growth as we possibly can. At the end of the day, it is about keeping more of your hard-earned dollars after taxes, but it is also about growing this economy. Growing this economy is the rising tide that lifts all boats. That is what we are about. We can sit here and not do something like that and say: OK, business as usual. That is not what the American people want. The American people sent us here to make changes, real changes that are going to help us grow our economy, create more jobs, and create more opportunity; that are going to do more for border security; that are going to strength our military and strengthen law enforcement, the rule of law in this country; that are going to improve our healthcare. So these are the kinds of things we have to get done. These are the kinds of things the American people have sent us here and said: Hey, we need to get going on these things. That is exactly what we are doing. I certainly call on all of our colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join together and get this done, get this tax relief done for the American people, and get it done before the year end. With that, I will defer to my esteemed colleague from North Carolina. I yield the floor.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I rise to discuss the tax relief bill, which the Senate is working very hard to try to pass. I brought some charts with me to show the impact this bill will have in terms of reducing the tax burden for hard-working American taxpayers and also helping to grow our economy. It is important to understand this is not just about making sure American taxpayers can keep more of their hard-earned wages and income but also this is about making sure we have a growing economy, that we have more jobs, and that we have rising wages and rising income for American workers. Here are just some of the statistics that show that. These statistics are according to the nonpartisan Tax Foundation and also the Council of Economic Advisers. What you see from this first chart is, this tax relief package is about real economic growth, not just making sure our taxpayers get a tax cut but about growing our economy. This top number, which comes from the Council of Economic Advisers, is $4,000 that workers, on average, would receive from the economic growth created by the combination of reducing the regulatory burden, which is something we have been working on all year with the administration--reducing that regulatory burden--and combining that then with tax relief to generate more economic growth. As I said, according to the Council of Economic Advisers and the nonpartisan Tax Foundation, it also generates almost 4 percent in terms of a larger economy. So this is about reducing the tax rates but growing the base and making sure, as I said, there are not only more jobs but also rising wages and income from that demand for labor that comes with a growing economy, that comes with investment, and that comes with job creation. For an average family of four, the tax cut is about $2,200 under the Senate bill. It generates about 925,000 new jobs over the scoring period and, as I said, almost a 4-percent larger economy. This next chart shows that across all income groups, across every income group, you see tax relief, and that is because we start by reducing the tax rates. So across the board, we work to make sure you are applying a lower tax rate to whatever income cohort you are talking about. So new rates are 10 percent, 12 percent, 22 percent, 24 percent, 23, 35, and a 38.5-percent top rate, but when you combine the lower rates along with an increased standard deduction--we increase the standard deduction. We about double it, from around $6,000 to about $12,000 and $24,000 for married filers, $18,000 for a single filer with a dependent. The result is, across every income group, we reduce the amount of tax they have to pay. At the same time, we preserve and expand many of the current tax provisions that are important to our American families. For example, the child tax credit, which is something the Presiding Officer has worked on very diligently, would be doubled. We double the child tax credit from $1,000 to $2,000. More family-owned small businesses and family farms will be protected from the death tax because we double the exemption amount. Right now, the unified credit is about $5.5 million, and we double that to more than $11 million so that if you have a small business or a farm, you are able to pass that from one generation to the next without being forced to sell it. To help save for college, expecting parents will be able to open a 529 savings account, again, helping families with children. Businesses will be encouraged to provide paid family and medical leave by giving them a tax credit to partially offset an employee's pay while caring for their child or for a family member. We do all of this while maintaining tax deductions that are important to many Americans. These include continuing the mortgage interest deduction--very important for homeowners--continuing the deductibility of charitable contributions to ensure that charities continue to receive contributions that are so important to them, continuing the child and dependent care tax credits, the adoption tax credit, the earned income tax credit, and the deferred treatment for 401(k)s and individual retirement accounts. That was something that came up earlier. There was some concern about reducing the limits on what could be contributed to retirement accounts on a tax-deferred basis, and we continue those levels so individuals can continue to save for retirement. We also continue the medical expense deduction, which is important to seniors who have significant medical expenses. The resulting increase in aftertax income will allow families more financial freedom and empower them to save for their retirement or perhaps for their children's education. Considering 50 percent of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck and over one-third of all families are just $400 away from serious financial difficulty, this is much needed relief, and it is certainly overdue. This tax relief is also very important for small businesses, so our third chart really goes to small business, which of course is the backbone of our economy. In my State, farming and ranching is incredibly important, but across the country, the backbone of our economy is small businesses. Ninety percent of the businesses in America are small businesses, and what this chart shows is that for passthroughs, which typically small businesses are passthroughs, that there is income relief again at all income levels. Remember how these passthrough small businesses work. Whether you have a sub S corporation, a limited liability corporation, a limited liability partnership, or a regular partnership, all these different types of small businesses are passthroughs, meaning the income flows through the business entity and is taxed at the individual level. That is why it is very important that we show that across the board, at all different income levels, small businesses benefit from this tax reduction. By reducing the maximum tax rate for sole proprietorships, partnerships, S corporations, and all the other passthrough entities I just mentioned, we are creating greater economic growth and opportunities as small businesses reinvest in their companies, reinvest in their employees, and reinvest in their communities. For many small businesses, equipment, business supplies, and other capital expenditures are very costly, and it cuts into their profit margin. So this is about helping them make those investments that enable them to grow their businesses, increase wages, and hire more employees. Our tax bill also allows businesses to immediately expense or write off the cost of new investments, effectively reinvesting in our small businesses and driving economic growth, job creation, and higher wages for American workers. We increase the amount allowed under section 179, something very important to small businesses, which essentially allows them to expense or write off their investments. This is a hugely important expensing provision for farmers, for ranchers, and really for small businesses across the board, and we enhance that section 179 expensing. All the while, we work to make sure we have stable government revenues through a broader tax base, a growing economy, and a more efficient tax system. That means we encourage investment, and it means the revenues that come to government come from a larger tax base and lower rates. So, individually, the hard-working citizens pay less of their earnings and businesses pay less as a percentage of their revenues, but because you have that economic growth--you have that rising tide that lifts all boats--government actually has more and stable revenues from economic growth not from higher taxes. That is some of what I showed in that first slide; that this is about growing our economy and driving that economic growth. The bill ensures that we are competitive in the global economy. In fact, as a result of the tax relief and tax reform we are undertaking, there is something like $2.5 trillion that is currently overseas that now has an incentive to come home and is invested here at home in our businesses, creating jobs in America and expansion of America's economy rather than having that money parked overseas or invested overseas. So, for all these reasons, I urge our colleagues on both sides of the aisle to work to pass this tax relief, this tax reform. This really is about making sure hard-working American taxpayers decide what to do with their hard-earned dollars. Again, I ask that all of us work together, pass this bill through the Senate, get it into conference with the House, and get the very best tax relief product we can for the American people and that we get it done before the end of the year. With that, I yield the floor.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I am very pleased to have the opportunity to speak today on the floor of the Senate after my esteemed colleague from the State of Georgia. My colleague is the chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, and I just want to express my appreciation for his commitment and his work on behalf of all of our great veterans. Like him, I rise today to speak in tribute to our veterans and men and women in uniform and all that they do for us. This weekend at events across the country, we will pay tribute to the fine men and women who have served in our Nation's Armed Forces. Every day--but especially on Veterans Day--we honor these soldiers who have left the comforts of home and family to defend our freedoms and fight for our way of life. Our freedoms have been secured by the sweat and sacrifice of courageous men and women who, throughout our history, have bravely done what was needed to protect our great Nation. We also recognize that those who serve do not serve alone. We appreciate, too, the sacrifices of the families and the loved ones who have supported our veterans in their service. This Veterans Day, we will honor military members from our ``greatest generation'' to those men and women fighting in the War on Terror today. These Americans understand best the words of President Ronald Reagan when he said: Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same. These men and women who have fought for and protected our country have given so much, and we cannot do enough to thank them, whether they returned from Active military duty 7 days ago or seven decades ago. Although we can never repay our debt of gratitude, one of the most tangible ways we recognize our veterans' service is by providing these men and women with quality healthcare and support services, including education and work opportunities. With that debt in mind, let me briefly outline some initiatives that we have been working on to provide for our veterans. Congress has passed significant veterans bills this year, including legislation that holds the VA accountable and ensures that VA employees are putting our veterans first and legislation that updates and modernizes the VA's benefit claims and appeals process, reducing wait times for our veterans. Additionally, one of my top priorities is ensuring that our veterans have access to healthcare options closer to their homes and their families. This includes improving veterans' access to services under the Veterans Choice Program and building on the success of the Veterans Care Coordination Initiative at the Fargo VA Medical Center in my home State. This effort has decreased the wait time for scheduling an appointment under Veterans Choice from 24 days a year ago to 5 or 6 days at present. This initiative can serve as a model to help address delays in scheduling appointments through the Veterans Choice Program across the Nation. We invited Secretary Shulkin, from North Dakota, to see this firsthand, and our Veterans Care Coordination Initiative has since been expanded to the VA facility in Helena, MT, as well. We believe it will be expanded to other locations across the country. We also passed an extension of the Veterans Choice Program earlier this year and secured $2.1 billion in additional funding for the program. This gives us time to work with the VA on the next phase of the program. In addition to Veterans Choice, we are working to improve local access to long-term care for our veterans. We secured a commitment from Secretary Shulkin to work with us on the Veterans Access to Long Term Care and Health Services Act. We have now introduced this legislation in the Senate, and a companion bill has been introduced in the House of Representatives. The legislation would remove burdensome redtape that prevents nursing homes and other healthcare providers from accepting veteran patients. Our bill allows the VA to enter into provider agreements with qualified healthcare and extended care facilities, bypassing complex Federal contracting requirements. This will give veterans more options to access long-term care services closer to their homes, their families, and to their loved ones. In addition, earlier this year, Congress passed--and the President signed into law--the forever GI bill, which improved and extended veterans' access to education and workforce opportunities. This is part of our efforts to ensure that we are supporting our veterans as they transition back to civilian life and work here at home. These are just a few examples of our efforts to ensure our veterans have the resources and the support they have so richly earned. While we cannot say thank you enough, in this way, we can honor their courage and their sacrifice. We honor Veterans Day because we have the greatest veterans in the world who have committed themselves to protect our Nation, and in so doing, they have transformed this country into the greatest the world has ever known. May God continue to bless our veterans and this great Nation that they have been protecting and make sure we honor the selfless service of all our men and women in uniform, of all our veterans, not only on Veterans Day but every day. I yield the floor.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I rise once again today to talk about how we are working to reform our outdated Tax Code and to provide much needed tax relief to our Nation's small businesses and to hard-working families and ranchers. We are working to not only provide hard-working taxpayers with tax relief but also to strengthen our economy and to stimulate job creation. Along with the regulatory relief we have already provided and are working to continue to provide, this tax relief is all about a growing economy, more jobs, and higher wages for hard-working Americans and then making sure that they not only keep more of their earnings after tax but that they see growing wages due to a stronger economy that is so important after the last decade of stagnant wages and income. It is important to understand that this tax relief is both. It is absolutely about lowering the tax burden, but it is also about moving wages and incomes higher. That is the rising tide that lifts all boats in our country. Today, the House of Representatives passed a budget resolution that the Senate sent them last week, so now we have completed the first step in terms of enacting pro-growth tax reform that, as I said, will provide tax relief to millions of middle-class families who have been struggling to get ahead over the past decade. Today, I want to focus on how our tax proposal will reduce the tax burden on small businesses. Small businesses make up 96 percent of all employers in my State and over 90 percent of the businesses in the country. Over 90 percent of the businesses in this country are small businesses. Earlier this week, we had a very productive meeting with the President to talk about our priorities for tax relief, and I specifically highlighted to him the importance of ensuring that tax reform works for our small businesses. When you talk about small businesses, you are talking about farmers and ranchers. As I said, 90 percent of all the businesses in this country are small businesses. So we are working with the administration and with the House to enact tax reforms that will enable American families to keep more of their hard- earned money and, as I said, empower our small businesses to invest and grow. Our effort is about growing our economy and regaining our economic competitiveness in a global economy. Our Tax Code needs to ensure that our small business owners and entrepreneurs can compete in that global economy. Small businesses, as I said, are the engine that drives our economy. They are the backbone of our economy. Small businesses create more jobs and employ more people than major corporations. They are the heart and soul of Main Streets across America. These businesses earn the majority of all business income in the United States and employ over half the private sector workforce in 49 out of 50 States. They employ over half of the private sector workforce in 49 of our 50 States. Over the past month, I have hosted tax reform roundtables across North Dakota to hear directly from our job creators--from our State's small businesses, from our ag leaders, from our farmers, and from our ranchers. What are their priorities when we talk about tax relief and tax reform? Our tax blueprint supports those small businesses throughout the country by promoting job creation, economic growth, and, as I said earlier, global competitiveness. We propose to do this in a number of ways, but the biggest and most impactful thing is that we are lowering the tax burden. It needs to be tax relief. Right now, for our small businesses, the marginal tax rate can reach as high as 44.6 percent. Think about that. Almost half of their income is going to Federal income tax. That is nearly twice the average rate of the rest of the industrialized world. So here we are trying to compete with that high tax rate--almost double compared to the average rate of the rest of the industrialized world. By reducing the maximum tax rate for sole proprietorships, partnerships, and S corporations to 25 percent, we are creating greater economic growth and opportunity as small businesses reinvest in their businesses, in their employees, in their communities, and generate job growth. Additionally, many small businesses, including farmers and ranchers, do not have access to the equity they need to operate, instead relying heavily on debt financing to fund their businesses. They go to the bank and borrow. This is particularly true for new and beginning enterprises, including new startups in technology--not just farming and ranching and traditional businesses but businesses across the board. Our Tax Code needs to incentivize our Nation's entrepreneurs to start their business, and we need to make sure they can get access to capital. They need to be able to get access to that capital, but when they do, by and large, they are going to the bank and borrowing. That means they have to pay interest on that debt. So it is very important for small businesses that the interest on that debt be deductible. That is a huge cost, particularly for our farmers and ranchers. They don't have opportunities to float equity. They don't raise equity for their farming operation when they need to buy a tractor or a combine or you name it. They have to go to the bank and borrow. So the deductibility of that interest expense to them is absolutely vital in their interests. That is true with small businesses across the board. When you look at small businesses in your community, they go to the bank and they borrow, and that interest cost is a big part of their business expense. They need to be able to continue to deduct it. In the framework that we have proposed, another very important issue is being able to expense investments. If you really want to trigger growth, you encourage that investment. So the tax reform framework or proposal that we have put forward allows, in the first 5 years, full expensing of new investments. That is very stimulative to our economy. It is very pro-growth. The other piece that I think is very important here is that we keep the section 179 expensing longer term. I think, as we proposed it now, we would have expensing in the first 5 years-- full expensing. That is great. That is, as I say, stimulative to the economy. But beyond that, then we need to make sure that section 179 expensing is there so that small businesses, farmers, ranchers, and others will know that they are going to continue to be able to expense their investment in new plants and new equipment. That is what keeps those small businesses growing. That is what keeps them hiring more people. That is what creates more jobs, and that is what pushes wages and income higher. Also, we need to simplify and streamline the Tax Code. Right now, the Tax Code is nearly 70,000 pages long--talk about being difficult and complex. Americans, right now, currently spend 6 billion hours a year complying with that Tax Code. That is ridiculous. Can you imagine 6 billion hours a year just to figure out how to pay your taxes? So here is somebody who wants to pay their taxes. They spend all that time and all that effort just to figure out how much they have to pay. Obviously, we can do a lot better than that. Our goal through tax reform is to allow the vast majority of Americans to file their tax return on a single simple page. I will mention that again. I think it is important. Our goal is for the vast majority of Americans, in essence, to file their tax return on one page and to make it easier to pay your taxes, to figure out what you owe, and to take away all that stress and all that difficulty in just trying to pay your taxes. Many economists agree that high business taxes reduce wages to workers, raise costs for consumers, and reduces returns on retirement savings. Maintaining these high tax rates do nothing to improve the fairness of our system. They only punish everyday, hard-working, tax- paying citizens and reduce economic opportunity in America. I will conclude on the same point that I started with, and that is by saying that there are two objectives here. It is not just to simplify and reduce the tax burden, so that people have more of their earnings in their pocket after paying taxes, but the other is to make sure they earn more and that we move wages and income higher. If you look at the growth rate in our economy over the last decade, it has struggled, in essence, to get to 2 percent. But compare that to the period from World War II to the present. Over that longer period, we averaged 3.3 percent. We want to get that growth rate back up. We started to get that growth rate back up by reducing the regulatory burden. Over the course of this year, the administration and this Congress have done a lot to reduce the regulatory burden. Our growth rate has ticked up in the most recent month to 3.1 percent, the highest it has been in a long time. So what we want to do is to combine that regulatory relief and tax relief and get that higher growth rate. We also want to add an infrastructure package. When you put those things together, what do you get? You get more jobs, higher wages, higher income, and a higher standard of living for hard-working American citizens across this great Nation. That is the objective. That is what we are trying to do. We all need to work together, and our goal is to get that done before the end of the year. With that, I yield the floor.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I am pleased to follow the distinguished Senator from South Carolina and appreciate very much his remarks and how he does such a good job of really explaining why this tax relief is so very important. I rise today to talk about the need for tax relief and how our Tax Code is now both outdated, very complex, and again, as my esteemed colleague from South Carolina said, it is past time to provide tax relief for our Nation's families, farmers, ranchers, and small businesses. That is what passing this legislation is all about-- providing much needed tax relief for our hard-working citizens. As I said, it is past time to modernize our outdated American Tax Code and bring it into the 21st century. We need to do so to ensure that American businesses can compete on the global stage; it is a global economy, and we must compete. And it is very much focused on our efforts to bring tax relief to middle-class families, who have been struggling to get ahead and stay ahead over the last decade. As I said, the Senate this week is taking the first step--a very important step--toward enacting pro-growth tax reform by passing a budget resolution that provides the path toward improving our economic growth and putting more money back into the pockets of hard-working American people. Voting for this budget will enable us to move forward to enact that tax relief, again, not only for our families, but for farmers, ranchers, and small businesses across this country. Small business is the absolute backbone of our economy, and that is where the vast majority of jobs are created. It is very important to understand and realize that this is not just about tax relief--making sure that, after taxes, hard-working Americans keep more of their money in their pocket, again, as so eloquently detailed by the Senator from South Carolina--but it is also about growing our economy. This is also pro-growth. This is about stimulating economic growth, meaning more jobs and, as the businesses that create those jobs invest the capital, create those jobs as they compete for labor, that also moves wages and income higher. So think about it. For that hard-working American, it is not only about reducing his or her tax burden, it is about increasing their wages and income. That is the rising tide that lifts all boats, so it is both. It is both about improving wages and income, as well as reducing the tax burden. The recently released tax blueprint proposes sweeping tax reform, tax relief that will benefit working families and small businesses across the country while promoting job creation, economic growth, and global competitiveness. This country was built on hard work by individuals and families who strive each and every day to make ends meet, provide for their loved ones, and plan for retirement, but this past decade has seen too many families struggling to get by. The current Tax Code is complex; it is riddled with loopholes. That not only does nothing to help our hard- working families keep more of their money, it makes it very difficult to even fill out their tax returns. Tax relief will help individuals and families in my State of North Dakota and across the country to get ahead by generating new jobs through economic growth, as I said, while also lowering their overall tax burden so that they keep more of their paycheck. For example, by doubling the standard deduction, we will eliminate taxes on the first $12,000 earned by an individual and $24,000 earned by a married couple, effectively establishing a 0-percent tax rate up to $24,000. This means that the nearly 81 percent of North Dakotans who claim the standard deduction--again, my State--will see a significant increase in their take-home pay, and that is true across the country. Our tax framework aims to generate greater opportunities for small business owners and farmers, helping them to become more competitive. Remember, we all compete in a global economy now, so how do we help our farmers, our ranchers, our small businesses become more competitive? Small business represents nearly 96 percent of all employers in my State, and while we have fostered a business-friendly environment in North Dakota, the Federal Tax Code continues to place undue burdens on our small businesses that operate across North Dakota and across the other 49 States. That includes our farmers and ranchers, who can pay a marginal tax rate as high as almost 45 percent, which is nearly twice the rate of the rest of the industrialized world. The tax framework follows an example that we have set, and the tax framework that we have proposed will restore economic opportunity and, as I said, enact a pro-growth tax code for our country. Last week, I hosted tax reform sessions and roundtables across North Dakota to hear directly from our small businesses and also from ag leaders, our farm leaders, on their priorities. I want to talk about some of those priorities in agriculture for just a minute. Agriculture is No. 1 in North Dakota. We are a huge energy State, as well, but agriculture is and always will be No. 1 in our State. So when we talk about tax relief, we need to talk about tax relief for our farmers and our ranchers. The right tax reform will help our farmers continue to provide the highest quality, lowest cost food supply in the world, which benefits every single American every single day. So that includes reducing the tax burden on these hard-working farmers and across the board for small businesses which, as I said, are the job creators in our economy, in our country. The biggest way we do that is to drop that rate for small business to 25 percent. That is a huge step forward. It not only makes our farms, ranches, and small businesses across the country more competitive, but it generates the economic growth that is so important for job creation and higher wages. Another important issue is, in this framework, we eliminate the death tax or the estate tax. The death tax can result in double and sometimes triple taxation of income. For example, an individual's wages are taxed when they are earned, and interest, dividends, and capital gains from saved wages are taxed again. The death tax hits those earnings again when an individual dies. The average farmer today is 60 years old. The average farmer is 60 years old, and we continually see fewer and fewer young people able to get into the business of farming. With a tax code that disincentivizes passing down the family farm to the next generation, how do we expect to feed our Nation and, in fact, the world, which is exactly what we do? The estate tax also stifles economic growth and reduces our Nation's competitiveness. A study by the Joint Economic Committee in 2012 found that the death tax had destroyed $1.1 trillion in capital stock in the economy, and, of course, less capital investment means fewer jobs. Eliminating the death tax will encourage individuals to save, grow our economy, and, according to the Tax Foundation, will increase the capital investment reinvested back into our economy. Additionally many of our producers, our farmers, and other small businesses do not have access to the equity they need to operate, so they rely heavily on debt financing to fund their businesses, and that is particularly true for new and beginning enterprises. Our Tax Code should incentivize our Nation's entrepreneurs to start their business or farm operation and allow them to grow and prosper. That is why it is a priority--certainly one of my priorities--that as we do tax reform, we maintain the ability of these businesses to deduct from their taxes the interest they pay on their debt in order to maintain a level playing field for small business. Think about a family farmer out there. When family farmers need capital, it is very hard for them to go out and get equity. So they have to borrow that money in order to buy equipment and invest in their enterprises, and that is why the interest deduction for farmers is so very, very important. They don't have access to that equity capital; they have to borrow their money, which is a huge cost to their operation, and that is why the interest deduction for our farmers and for our ranchers is so very important. Also, expensing is important for farmers and ranchers, and this is important for all small businesses. Being able to expense what they invest in their business makes a huge difference. Equipment, business supplies, and other capital expenditures can be very costly. For example, a new combine nowadays probably costs about one-half million dollars. For farmers to come up with one-half million dollars to buy a combine, which they obviously need, is hard to do unless they are able to expense that investment and deduct the interest on the debt that goes with it. The tax framework we have proposed would allow businesses to immediately write off or expense the cost of new investment and business assets, effectively reinvesting in our Nation's businesses and helping to drive economic growth. It will allow businesses to increase investment and, again, increase job creation and wages. I would propose that we have full expensing for the first 5 years--that is great--but we should also on a long-term basis keep the section 179 expensing provision, which we have worked very hard to make permanent and which should be retained in this new Tax Code for the long-term, as we get beyond the first 5 years, as part of tax reform and tax relief that really works for our ag sector. So these are some of the priorities we will be working on to include in our tax relief package to ensure that our farmers, our ranchers, and our ag industry continue to remain strong and really the leaders worldwide when it comes to, as I said, not only producing the highest quality but the lowest cost food supply in the world, which benefits every American every single day. Tax reform is about getting the American economy going and growing, it is about creating jobs, and it is about creating jobs here at home, not overseas. It is about bringing that capital that is stranded overseas and repatriating it back to America and creating jobs in this country. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to work together. We need to pass this budget, and we need to pass tax reform for the hard- working people of North Dakota and for hard-working Americans across this great country. I yield the floor.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Madam President, I rise today to talk about what is really a ``once in a generation'' opportunity, and that is the opportunity we have right now to reform our outmoded and complex Tax Code and also, most importantly, to provide tax relief for our Nation's families, farmers, and small businesses. Our Tax Code has not been updated since 1986. When you think about all that has changed over the last 30 years, you know that modern advances in technology have drastically revolutionized the way business is conducted. Today, the creation of the internet, substantially increased automation, and instant communications have created dramatic changes and in many ways have brought us closer in terms of communication and have interconnected our global economy in ways we never could have foreseen back in the 1980s, when we last reformed our Tax Code. So it is past time--not time but past time--to modernize our outdated Tax Code to the 21st century. We must do so in order to ensure that American businesses can compete on the global stage, while providing tax relief to hard-working middle-class families who have been struggling to get and stay ahead over the last decade. The recently released tax blueprint proposes sweeping tax reforms that will benefit working families and small businesses throughout the country while promoting job creation, economic growth, and global competitiveness. This country was built on hard work by individuals and families who strive each and every day to make ends meet to provide for their loved ones and to plan for retirement. The current Tax Code is complex and has many loopholes that do nothing to help our hard-working families keep more of their own hard-earned money. Our tax framework will help individuals and families in my home State and across this country to get ahead by generating new jobs through sustained economic growth while lowering the overall tax burden and putting more money back in the taxpayers' pockets. We do this in a number of ways: by doubling the standard deduction, by eliminating taxes on the first $12,000 earned by an individual and $24,000 earned by a married couple, effectively establishing a zero- percent tax rate as the bottom bracket--the bottom tax rate. That means that nearly 81 percent of North Dakotans who claim the standard deduction could see a significant increase in their take-home pay. That is true of other States across the country as well. Further, we are consolidating and lowering the tax rates across the board while simplifying the Tax Code to make it fairer for everybody. At nearly 70,000 pages long, it is no wonder that Americans currently spend 6 billion hours a year complying with the Tax Code. In fact, 94 percent of taxpayers choose either to pay someone else or to use software to prepare their taxes because of the complexity of our Tax Code. Our goal for tax reform is to allow the vast majority of Americans to file their tax returns on a single page--a simple calculation, something they can do themselves. We want to reduce the cost and stress that many Americans feel during tax season. Further, our tax framework aims to create greater opportunities for small business owners, farmers, and others to help grow our economy and be more competitive than ever before. While we focus on a business friendly State in North Dakota--we have a very business friendly climate--the Federal tax continues to place an undue burden on the nearly 71,000 small businesses that operate in our State, which is more than 95 percent of all of the employers in the State. Again, this is something that applies across the Nation. The driver of our economy, the backbone of our economy is small business. They are the job generators. They are the job creators. We have to do more to help them do what they do, which is to create jobs and to grow our economy. The same applies to our family farmers. My State alone has more than 30,000 family farms and ranches. Their marginal tax rate can reach as high as almost 45 percent, nearly twice the average rate of the rest of the industrialized world. That creates real challenges. This tax framework follows the example we have set in our State by restoring economic opportunity, by lowering the tax burden, and by enacting a pro-growth tax code. Economists in general agree that high corporate taxes reduce wages to workers, raise costs to consumers, and reduce returns on retirement savings. That affects all of us. Maintaining high tax rates does nothing to improve the fairness of our system. It only punishes everyday citizens and reduces economic opportunities for all Americans. For far too long, our Tax Code has incentivized American companies to send jobs and investment overseas, instead of keeping them here at home--keeping that investment, keeping those jobs here at home. Consequently, large multinational corporations now hold approximately $2.6 trillion overseas. That is money that could be repatriated back to the United States for investment in American jobs here at home. Our framework would end the loopholes and the incentives that keep foreign profits offshore by moving to a territorial tax system and encouraging repatriation of these offshore funds, bringing that investment back to America. This is about getting the American economy going again and creating jobs and opportunity here at home rather than overseas. It is vital that we advance a comprehensive tax reform that simplifies the IRS code and simplifies rates. Putting more money in the pockets of working individuals and families and empowering private investment will drive domestic job creation and increase wages through higher demand for labor and lower business costs. All the while we can ensure stable government revenues through a broader tax base, a growing economy, and a more efficient tax system. That means that we will continue to be able to fund our priorities as we work to get our debt and deficit under control. Ensuring U.S. competitiveness in the global marketplace and providing tax relief to middle-class families will benefit both current and future generations. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to work together to get tax reform done for the people of my State of North Dakota, for their respective States, and for Americans across this entire country. With that, Madam President, I yield the floor.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, 75 years ago, on October 13, 1942, the men of the 164th Infantry Regiment, North Dakota Army National Guard, landed on Guadalcanal to make history as the first U.S. Army unit to offensively engage the enemy in either theatre during World War II. The soldiers, supplies, and the rifles they carried were welcomed by the beleaguered First Marine Division that had been fighting on the island since August. The prize was the strategic airfield captured by the marines and coveted by both Allies and the enemy as a key location to champion air and naval superiority in that area of the South Pacific. On Guadalcanal for only 12 days, the trained but untested soldiers were thrust into the second battle for Henderson Field on the night of October 24. The 3rd Battalion trudged up muddy slopes to fight shoulder to shoulder with Lt. Col. Chesty Puller's marines as waves of Japanese threatened the thin line protecting the airfield. The next day, having proved its mettle, the 164th Infantry remained in charge of that line as the marines moved to an adjacent location. The Japanese attacked the 164th sector on the night of October 26, incorrectly believing the new Army troops could not hold the line. The 164th held firm at the location that became known as the Battle of Coffin Corner, earning the respect of the marines in the form of a Navy Presidential Unit Citation. The lineage of the 164th Infantry Regiment carries significant history as North Dakota National Guard infantrymen were called to serve in the Spanish American War, the Philippine Insurrection, Mexican Border Incident, World War I, World War II, and the Korean war. The regiment ceased to exist in 1955, its companies reorganized to engineer units, but the esprit de corps of the combat soldiers has remained intact. On the 75th anniversary, to the day, of the regiment's landing at Guadalcanal, the 164th Infantry Association will hold its last annual reunion, ending a tradition that began in 1945. On Saturday, October 14, the 164th Association will host a public event to recognize the service and heritage of the unit that was so important to the history of the North Dakota Army National Guard, the State of North Dakota, and the United States of America. Eight veterans of Guadalcanal will attend this event, ages 94 to 98, and they will represent all members of the regiment, living or remembered, as this important chapter of North Dakota military history ends.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to complete my remarks.

Mr. HOEVEN. Madam President, I am honored to come to the floor today to express my support for the President's nominee to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, Judge Ralph Erickson. Judge Erickson is a longtime North Dakotan and has been a tremendous public servant in his current capacity as Federal district court judge in Fargo, ND. He has made our State proud, and I am confident he will be an excellent addition to the Eighth Circuit Court. Judge Erickson has a distinguished legal career which spans over two decades. After working in private practice for 10 years, he served as a magistrate judge for Cass County and then as a State district judge for the East Central Judicial District Court. In 2003, Judge Erickson was nominated by President George W. Bush to the U.S. District Court for the District of North Dakota and was quickly confirmed by the Senate unanimously. Throughout his tenure, Judge Erickson has demonstrated deep respect for the Constitution and the rule of law. His judicial experience ranges from overseeing routine civil cases to cases involving extreme criminal violence. Throughout all of these cases, Judge Erickson practiced a measured and prudential legal approach that is necessary for a position on the second highest court in the United States. Judge Erickson has also proved to be a champion for Indian Country. He serves as the Chair of the Tribal Issues Advisory Group on the United States Sentencing Commission, where he works to preserve Tribal sovereignty. As chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, I believe Judge Erickson's expertise on this issue will be a valuable asset to the Eighth Circuit Court. Madam President, part of our duty as Senators is to evaluate the qualifications of the President's appointees and to vote on their nominations accordingly. This is a responsibility that I take very seriously, and I have no doubt that if confirmed, Judge Erickson will be an excellent circuit judge. I am honored to be here to support his nomination and to urge my colleagues to vote yes. I would also like to note that in the Gallery today we have his daughter Elizabeth joining us. I think it is wonderful that she could be here to see her father's confirmation vote. She is a sophomore at Catholic University and just an outstanding young person, and there is no doubt that she is extremely proud of her father today. So it is wonderful to welcome her here for this momentous occasion. With that, Madam President, I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 252, submitted earlier today.

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 254, submitted earlier today.

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 10 a.m. on Thursday, September 14; further, that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed; finally, that following leader remarks, the Senate resume consideration of H.R. 2810.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that it stand adjourned under the provisions of S. Res. 254 as a further mark of respect to the late Pete Domenici, former Senator from New Mexico.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 253, submitted earlier today.

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I rise today to honor the new Miss America. That is Cara Mund, a former intern in my office up until the end of last year. Last night she made history and became the first Miss North Dakota to win the title of Miss America. My wife Mikey and I were watching the pageant on TV and cheering for Cara throughout the competition. We, like North Dakotans across our State, were very excited when she was crowned Miss America. The amazing thing is that she had actually tried four times to win the Miss North Dakota pageant. She won the Miss North Dakota pageant on her fourth try, and then she went on to win the Miss America pageant. It is just an amazing story of somebody who decided she were going to accomplish a goal and did so. It is truly amazing and inspirational to anyone who sets out to achieve something really worthwhile, and it shows what determination can do. Cara is truly impressive, and we are so proud to have her representing North Dakota and, of course, now the entire Nation as Miss America. Following graduation from Brown University with a degree in business, entrepreneurship, and organizations, Cara served as an intern here in my Washington, DC, office. She did a tremendous job. As I say, she was with us for half of last year. So she started about midyear and finished up at the end of the year. Again, she did tremendous work for us, and we are so appreciative of having her with us. While only 23, she has a long history of public and community service. For the past 10 years, she has organized the annual Make-a- Wish fashion show, which has raised more than $78,500 to make dreams come true for more than 20 kids who have faced life-altering conditions. It is only fitting that after spending so much of her life making others' dreams come true, Cara's own dreams were made a reality last night. She is so well-deserving of the title, and I know that continued service to others and public service will be part of her life's work. She is going on to law school at Notre Dame after, of course, taking a year as Miss America and touring around the country and doing what I know will be a fabulous job as Miss America. Then she wants to go on to law school at Notre Dame, where she has already been accepted. I know she has a real interest in public service and maybe even some day running for Governor or another elective office. I have no doubt that whatever she decides to do, she will be successful, and, more importantly, she will do a great job for others. She will do a great job for many other people. She has such a good heart, and she is such a great young person--exactly the kind of person that we need out there helping face the challenges we face as a nation, setting a great example, and doing things for so many others that makes such a difference in their lives. She is well-deserving of the title. She represents our State so well, and we have no doubt that she will continue to make us proud as Miss America. Congratulations, again, to Miss America 2018, Cara Mund. She is fantastic. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I rise today to speak in support of the VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act--bipartisan legislation that will help ensure that our veterans receive the care they deserve. We owe our veterans more than we can ever repay for their dedicated service. Part of this debt is providing our veterans with timely, high- quality healthcare. In my home State of North Dakota, our VA medical center is located in Fargo. It not only serves the veterans in North Dakota, but it also serves the western half of Minnesota as well. If there is one thing that our veterans have made very clear about the health center in Fargo--from both North Dakota and Minnesota--our veterans have made clear that it is an outstanding healthcare center that provides high- quality service. Our veterans love the Fargo VA. They do a great job. It is important to note that the vast majority of VA employees are dedicated to serving our veterans and are working diligently to provide services to veterans in their communities. However, as recent events have shown, there are a number of instances where poor performance or misconduct by a VA employee has had tragic consequences. In cases like these, the VA needs to have the ability to address these situations and to do it in a fair but expeditious manner. This bipartisan legislation will provide the VA Secretary with the necessary tools to do just that and ensure that VA employees are putting our veterans first. Specifically, this legislation establishes in law the Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection within the VA, a post which was created earlier this year through Executive order. It authorizes the Secretary of VA to reprimand, suspend, demote, or remove VA employees at any level and hasten the appeal and review process. Additionally, it establishes protections for whistleblowers . These reforms are important for our veterans. That is why the legislation has garnered the support of many veterans organizations. It has garnered the support of our North Dakota VA Commissioner, as well as the veterans service organizations, including the American Legion, AMVETS, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, the Military Officers Association of America, and others. It has also garnered the support of cosponsors on both sides of the aisle in this Chamber. Seventy-three years ago, over 160,000 brave Allied troops landed on the beaches of Normandy. I can think of no more an appropriate day to pass legislation that honors our commitment to our veterans and helps ensure they receive the care they have earned. I thank the committee chair, Senator Isakson of Georgia, and also Senator Tester of Montana for their outstanding bipartisan leadership on this important legislation. I particularly also want to thank Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, who is the primary sponsor of this legislation and has been a champion for veterans issues. I know this accountability issue is one he has spoken about consistently, often, and passionately on behalf of our veterans. I thank him for his leadership on this very important legislation. At this time, I yield to the prime sponsor of this bill, Senator Marco Rubio.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I have a request for the Indians Affairs Committee to meet today at 2:30 p.m. First, we have a markup in the Indian Affairs Committee. The two bills we are marking up are Democrat-sponsored bills. The first one is Senator Tester's bill, from the State of Montana, which would provide support for Native languages. I guess the summary is that it would support the education of Indian children. I believe it relates to Native languages in that educational capacity. So that is one of the bills, Senator Tester's bill. The other bill we are marking up is Senator Tim Kaine's bill, also a Democrat-sponsored bill. The short narrative I have is this: To extend Federal recognition to the Chickahominy Indian Tribe, the Chicahominy Indian Tribe-Eastern Division, the Upper Mattaponi Tribe, the Rappahonnock Tribe, the Monacan Indian Nation, and the Nansemond Indian Tribe. The reason that is significant, that is something that both Senator Kaine and Senator Warner--both Senators from Virginia--have been working on for some time. The reason it is timely is that they have Pocahontas's birthday celebration coming up, which I think is going to be a large celebration in the Commonwealth of Virginia. They were hoping to have these Tribes recognized before this birthday celebration for Pocahontas. It is a timely issue. Obviously, we can't advance the bill to the Senate floor unless we mark it up. At the request of those two Democratic Senators from the Commonwealth of Virginia, we are scheduled to mark up those bills and get them to the floor and try to do it in a timely way because of the celebration they are trying to get prepared for. Everybody knows the story of Pocahontas and why that would be a big celebration and certainly a big deal in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Again, as we debate this on the Senate floor, I think Senator Daines made some strong points, and I would certainly appeal to our colleagues across the aisle to consider what I just described as far as those markups. In addition to those markups, we also have a hearing on several bills. The first one is a McCain bill, and it is to amend the PROTECT Act to make Indian Tribes eligible for AMBER Alert grants. Everybody knows what the AMBER Alert Program is and how important that program is to protect our young people when they get abducted. The reason Senator McCain, from Arizona, is bringing this bill forward is because there was an abduction in Arizona, and the AMBER Alert went out late. I think the AMBER Alert went out a day late. Senator McCain has this PROTECT Act so we can make sure the AMBER Alert is working in Indian Country, and you certainly can understand how important it is that we do that. We have to have a hearing on the bill again so we can advance the bill to the Senate floor for consideration. The final bill that we would have a hearing on in committee, if we are allowed to meet, is a Murkowski bill, Senator Murkowski from Alaska. It would provide the conveyance of certain property in this State. You have to realize that the witnesses--and I think certainly the good Senator from Hawaii will appreciate this--had to come here from Alaska, which is quite a lengthy trip. When the Senator travels back home to Hawaii, that is a long trip. It is certainly a beautiful place but a long trip to get there. Of course, it is not inexpensive to travel from Alaska to Washington, DC. Those witnesses will be out their costs to come here if we are not able to have the hearing, and we would have to reschedule it. That certainly creates a cost burden for them, which is certainly unfair and not what they would want to have had happen on the part of their government. I am putting that in human terms. Again, we are talking about two Democratic bills, and we are talking about two Republican bills. We are talking about constituents who have traveled a long way to come here to have the hearing and the markup. Again, these are issues we should be able to work on in a bipartisan way. I would certainly ask for that consideration. At this point, I ask for unanimous consent that our committee be allowed to meet.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, now is the time to get back to basics. The Federal Government doesn't exist for its own sake, it exists for the people, and if Federal regulation serves no useful function for the people, then it only serves to hold back our Nation's prosperity and growth. With so many Americans hungry for good-paying jobs, now is the time to unleash our Nation's economic potential by getting government out of the way. It is just plain common sense to eliminate regulations that are duplicative, costly, and unworkable. We need to get back to the basics by getting rid of those kinds of regulations, and one of those regulations is the BLM methane rule. Now, the BLM methane rule is one of those midnight regulations that the Obama administration put out as they were walking out the door. This new regulation from the Bureau of Land Management--or BLM--imposes new rules and royalty rates on methane emissions from oil and gas production on Federal and Indian lands. For those wondering why methane emissions aren't already regulated, there is a simple explanation: They are. Under the Clean Air Act, the Environmental Protection Agency, in partnership with individual States, is tasked with regulating air quality, which includes methane emissions. In fact, States like my State of North Dakota and the State of Texas, where the Presiding Officer resides, currently have regulatory systems in place to govern oil and gas emissions. Critically, the North Dakota Industrial Commission has put in place flaring requirements that have successfully reduced the flaring in our State from 35 percent down to 10 percent as a result of their work, and they have a goal to take it even further. This flaring reduction is a big deal because to reduce methane emissions you need to reduce flaring. Flaring sounds complicated, but it is very simple. When excess gas is produced along with oil and it can't be captured, then it gets burned off, or flared. Neither industry nor State officials like flaring because it wastes natural gas--it wastes a natural resource--of which methane obviously is the main component. As most Americans know, obviously, natural gas is a valuable commodity that is used to heat our homes and power our factories. That is why both industry and the States have worked hard to make big improvements. They want to capture that natural gas and that methane. That is not just in North Dakota. That is in other energy-producing States across the country. Nationally, methane emissions from the oil and gas industry have been on the decline for a number of years. So we are already actively working at the State level under a regulatory regime where States have primacy to spend, authorized by EPA, to reduce natural gas flaring. With methane emissions already being regulated and reduced by the States and industry, it is tough to figure out why this new BLM regulation has been passed and what it is accomplishing. This rule has been calculated to cost up to $279 million each year. So the cost of this rule is $279 million a year--a duplicative rule. That is in addition to the redtape. BLM estimates that the rule will impose an additional 82,000 hours of paperwork. These numbers just might sound like the cost of doing business, if you will, but America's job creators know it is really costing us business, it is costing us economic growth, and it is costing us jobs. These aren't really numbers. There are livelihoods at stake. What makes the BLM methane rule particularly burdensome is the fact that it is simply unworkable. The rule sets a maximum volume that each well can flare, which will lead to curtailment and shut-in wells, meaning actually having to shut down the wells. Of course, that decreases oil production and reduces royalty payments. So that means less energy, the owners get less revenue, and we have less jobs. Meanwhile, this rule treats all drilling spacing units the same, regardless of whether they have minimal Federal ownership. Remember, a lot of these wells they are trying to regulate are on minerals owned by the Federal Government, but they may also be on minerals owned by private individuals. So, once again, we have one of these Federal one- size-fits-all regulations that just does not work in practice. That is why regulating the natural gas and methane emissions has been delegated to the States by EPA and why it should be up to the States. So the States are fighting back. Wyoming, Montana, and North Dakota filed a legal challenge to the rule in the U.S. district court in Wyoming. The good news is that the States and our economy will not have to wait until this lawsuit makes its way through the court system. We can provide regulatory relief right now, and we should do so through the Congressional Review Act--the CRA--which provides Congress with a tool to rid the Nation of burdensome, duplicative regulations like this one, and that is what our schedule is for tomorrow--to take up this CRA. I am a cosponsor of this CRA, and we need to pass it. I wish to thank the chairman of the EPW Committee, Senator Barrasso, for his work on this issue, and others. The House has already passed this CRA. This has already been passed by the House. The President has expressed his support for it. We need to pass it tomorrow. We need to get this done. Every week I meet with North Dakotans and others who are working so hard to produce energy for this country, to create jobs and a better future for their families. They need and deserve a Federal Government that will not stand in their way. This is a basic but fundamental objective and a good place to reduce that regulatory burden to get our economy going. The way to create more economic growth, more jobs, and higher income levels is by reducing the regulatory burden, and this is a great example. Again, it is just about common sense. It is about empowering the States to take a States-first approach, a State's primacy approach in terms of this kind of regulation. How we produce energy in Texas or North Dakota or Ohio or Pennsylvania or Washington State--it is different across the country. We can't have a Federal one-size-fits-all rule. That is why it needs to be left up to the States. We have a chance tomorrow to pass this measure, and it is exactly the kind of measure that will help reduce that regulatory burden, help us grow our economy, and help us create good jobs. I urge my colleagues to join with us and pass this CRA. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. HOEVEN

Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I am honored to come to the floor today and join my colleagues to support the nomination of Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court of the United States. Judge Gorsuch is an exemplary pick for my home State of North Dakota and for our Nation as a whole. He has shown deep respect for the Constitution and has a strong record of upholding the rule of law. If confirmed, Judge Gorsuch will take the seat that was held by the late Justice Antonin Scalia. Of course, filling that vacancy will be no easy task. Justice Scalia was a brilliant legal mind who had earned the respect of many in the legal community during his nearly 30 years on the Supreme Court. He was a true defender of the U.S. Constitution and sought to protect it so that future generations of Americans could live and thrive in a free society. His legacy on the Court will influence American jurisprudence for generations to come. If there is anyone who is worthy of filling Justice Scalia's shoes, it is Judge Gorsuch. Like Scalia, Judge Gorsuch is an originalist when it comes to interpreting the Constitution. I had the pleasure of meeting with Judge Gorsuch last week to discuss his nomination, and I am confident that he will make an excellent Justice. If you look at his background, it is clear that he is an incredibly qualified nominee. After receiving degrees from Columbia, Harvard, and then Oxford, Judge Gorsuch went on to clerk for notable Supreme Court Justices Byron White and Anthony Kennedy before entering private practice. After 10 years of private practice, Gorsuch began his career in public service as a Deputy Associate Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice. In 2006, he was nominated by President George W. Bush to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, and he was confirmed unanimously by the U.S. Senate. Let me repeat that. He was confirmed unanimously by this body. I believe that says a lot about Judge Gorsuch as a candidate. In a body that is so often divided, a candidate who can receive unanimous support is truly noteworthy. When nominated by the President, Judge Gorsuch said: ``A judge who likes every outcome he reaches is very likely a bad judge . . . stretching for results he prefers rather than those the law demands.'' During his tenure on the Tenth Circuit, he has demonstrated fair and prudent judgment in his opinions. In addition to his impressive professional background, Judge Gorsuch has roots as a westerner and will bring those roots and a much needed perspective to the Supreme Court. Because decisions that come from the Court affect the lives of Americans from across the country, it is important that the Court be composed of Justices from different regions of the country. It is critical that our next Supreme Court Justice have a familiarity with the challenges Western and Midwestern States face, like my home State and others--issues such as States' rights, Second Amendment rights, land use disputes, and the complex relationship between State and Tribal governments. These are the everyday realities we face across this country that the Justices must deal with. I expect many of these important issues to come before the Supreme Court in the coming months. In fact, just yesterday, the Court decided to move forward on litigation regarding former President Obama's waters of the U.S. rule, also known as WOTUS, which has had a significantly burdensome impact on farmers and ranchers and threatens the constitutional role of the States. Judge Gorsuch's background also makes him a prominent voice for Indian Country. As chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, I believe it is important for our next Supreme Court Justice to have a concrete record of respecting Tribal sovereignty. I was pleased to learn that he has earned the support of a number of Native-American groups, including the National Congress of American Indians and the Native American Rights Fund. Judge Gorsuch has had a long history of handling cases that have affected Native Americans from his time on the Tenth Circuit, and he has demonstrated a consistent understanding of the unique legal principles that are involved in Federal Tribal law. The boundary between State and Tribal authorities is often ambiguous; yet Judge Gorsuch was able to bring clarity as he diligently studied the law and respected existing precedents in Tribal sovereignty. For example, the Ute Tribe of Utah has been engaged in legal battles with the State over the State's authority to prosecute Native Americans on Tribal land. Judge Gorsuch has consistently ruled in favor of Tribal sovereignty. In Hydro Resources v. EPA, a case in which EPA overreach was redefining the boundaries of Indian lands, Judge Gorsuch overruled the EPA's interpretation and respected the current Tribal boundaries. For all of these reasons, I urge a ``yes'' vote on Judge Gorsuch's nomination. As the highest Court in the land, the decisions have a widespread impact on millions of Americans. When the stakes are this high, it is necessary that we confirm someone with a sound, fair, and prudent approach to the law. I have no doubt that Judge Gorsuch is the right person for this role. I enthusiastically support his nomination, and I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to do the same. I yield the floor.