Health Care Reform

While President Obama was hosting a summit on health care, the issue was the focus at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue as well. Sens. Max Baucus (D-MT) and Edward Kennedy (D-MA) are working together to divide the task of moving health care reform legislation through the Senate. Baucus, as chairman of the Finance Committee, and Kennedy, as chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, share primary responsibility for creating and funding any effort to achieve universal health care. Baucus plans to divide members of his committee into working groups that would separately cover cost containment, insurance coverage, and payment system improvements. Kennedy continues to battle cancer but appears ready to play a critical role in constructing a Senate health plan. Earlier this week, top Senate Republicans, including Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (KY), staked out their priorities for health care reform in a letter to the president. The letter asks the president to avoid creating new Washington-run programs that would undermine market-based health care systems. The senators applauded the president's forum as a good step toward a bipartisan solution and called for continuing cooperation throughout the legislative process.

2010 Budget: Committee Hearings

Following last week's release of the president's budget, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Office and Management and Budget Director Peter Orszag testified before the top House and Senate committees in charge of tax policy. The contentious hearings show that Obama will have a difficult time passing many of the revenue raising provisions contained in the plan.

Democratic and Republican Senators on the Finance Committee challenged Geithner on the administration's attempt to eliminate the last in first out (LIFO) method of accounting starting in 2012. Repeal of LIFO would effectively raise taxes for companies using this common accounting method by $61 billion. Finance Ranking Member Charles Grassley (R-IA) is skeptical of LIFO repeal stating, "I don't think it's going to come up unless we have real corporate tax reform." Geithner was also challenged at the House Ways and Means Committee hearing by Rep. Geoff Davis (R-KY). After Geithner maintained that many tax professionals support repeal of LIFO, Davis retorted that, "I think some of those tax professionals have never run a factory." Reps. Ben Chandler (D-KY) and Lincoln Davis (D-TN) wrote Orszag this week asking him to reconsider the administration's stance on LIFO as it would harm large and small businesses.

Later in the hearing, Orszag defended the administration's projection of future economic strength under criticism that it overestimates future growth in order to minimize impending deficits. Ranking Member Dave Camp (R-MI) and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) charge that the administration underestimates deficits by as much as $758 billion. Camp also raised concerns that the carbon cap and trade program proposed in the budget is a hidden tax on energy use.

2010 Budget: Tax Summary

Printing Industries is pleased to provide a summary of the various tax proposals found in President Obama's 2010 budget. While the president's budget is not a binding document, it indicates his tax and spending priorities for the year. Congress will now begin the work of constructing budget legislation and will closely consider the president's recommendations.

Climate Change

With President Obama including a climate change program in his 2010 budget plan, a group of 16 Rust Belt Democratic Senators have once again come together to express their concerns about the effect such legislation could have on industry in their states. Led by Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), last year the group opposed the Warner-Lieberman climate change legislation leading to the failure of that bill. Obama's budget proposes a $645 billion program that would cap carbon emissions and then create market-to-trade carbon emission certificates. This would impose additional costs on heavy industry and electricity generation at a time when the economy is weak, concerning senators in states that have already seen decreasing industrial employment. Since many Republicans are intellectually opposed to cap and trade legislation, the "Gang of 16" will play an important role as votes from this group will be needed to achieve a filibuster-proof majority to pass any plan.

"Do Not Mail"

In the New York State Assembly, the Consumer Affairs and Protection Subcommittee passed bill A-3191 and referred it to the Codes Committee where it is currently delayed. The bill is not a typical "do not mail" bill but requires senders of unsolicited advertisements to provide consumers with an annual written notice of their ability to opt out of receiving future mailings. This places an unnecessary burden on businesses since most already maintain an in-house suppression system. New York printers who wish to express their concerns about the bill can use Printing Industries of America and Printing Industries Alliance online Action Alert to send a message to their assembly person.

USPS Rules and Regulations

To prepare customers for the implementation of Intelligent Mail Barcode (IMB) in May, the USPS will be holding a series of Intelligent Mail Technical Integration Webinars. Registration is available on the USPS website and the first webinar is scheduled for tomorrow, March 6, from 1:00-2:30 p.m. After that, webinars will be conducted every two weeks on Fridays at the same time. The webinars are free and USPS representatives will answer questions you may have about implementation of the new standards.

USPS Rules and Regulations

President Obama's 2010 budget proposes to bring the USPS in line with other federal government agencies in regard to health care premiums for workers. Currently, postal employees pay 70 percent of their health premium while federal employees and postal retirees pay 83 percent. Congress will have to approve this 13 percent increase and at this time it is uncertain whether there is support for a proposal in the House or Senate. The president hopes that increased premiums will help the USPS close their budget gap as mail volume and revenue decrease.

President Obama nominated Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D-KS) to head the Department of Health and Human Services. The governor is a close ally of Obama and supported him throughout the campaign and also appeared on the "short list" of candidates for vice president. Obama also appointed Nancy-Ann DeParle as his head of the Office of Health Reform or "health czar." DeParle was the commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Human Services and served in the Office of Management and Budget and Health Care Financing Administration during the Clinton Administration.

Sen. Roland Burris (D) continues to resist his Democratic colleagues' calls for him to resign and took steps this week to run in the 2010 election for his seat. Burris officially registered a website-www.supportburris.com-that could be used in a bid for election. The Senate Ethics Committee and the state of Illinois continue to investigate Burris' statements regarding whether he raised money for disgraced former Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D).

Today Al Franken (D) filed a motion to dismiss Sen. Norm Coleman's court challenge to the official results of the November election. The Minnesota Board of Elections declared Franken the winner of a recount by a slim margin of 225 votes. Should the motion to dismiss fail, the trial is expected to take at least two to three more weeks. While the trial is expected to wrap up before the end of the month, any appeals resulting from the decision could drag on for additional months. Democrats in the Senate continue to hint that they may try to seat Franken soon, but Republicans have vowed to filibuster any such attempt.

The Blue Dog Coalition, a group of moderate Democrats, has appointed two new members to grow their ranks to 51 members. Rep. Jason Altmire (PA) and Rep. Glenn Nye (VA) both joined this week. Altmire is in his second term representing his western Pennsylvania district and, according to a recent study by National Journal, his voting record placed him firmly in the center of the House. Altmire represents the district in which Printing Industries of America is headquartered. Nye, a freshman member, defeated incumbent Rep. Thelma Drake (R) in a close election for his Hampton Roads area district. The Blue Dog Coalition is expected to play a critical role in much of the debate over tax and spending issues as they advocate for balanced federal budgets.

"I don't think the White House has the ability to tell us what to do."

-- House Majority Leader Hoyer on the limited input the White House has on how Congress deals with earmarks. Hoyer added that the Obama administration can "suggest" ways to reform the process.

"You can't fly a commercial airliner on wind alone."

-- House Ways and Means ranking member Dave Camp, blasting at a hearing Tuesday the tax hikes on oil and gas producers to pay for renewable energy incentives in President Obama's budget.