FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, Contact (202) 225-1721
January 28, 1999
No. FC-4
Congressman Bill Archer (R-TX), Chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Committee will hold a hearing on President Clinton's fiscal year 2000 budget proposals within the jurisdiction of the Committee. The hearing will take place on Thursday, February 4, 1999, in the main Committee hearing room, 1100 Longworth House Office Building, beginning at 10:00 a.m.
In view of the limited time available to hear witnesses, oral testimony at this hearing will be from invited witnesses only. The main witness will be Secretary of the Treasury Robert E. Rubin. However, any individual or organization not scheduled for an oral appearance may submit a written statement for consideration by the Committee and for inclusion in the printed record of the hearing.
BACKGROUND:
On January 19, 1999, President Clinton delivered his State of the Union address. In it, he outlined numerous budget and tax proposals. Among them was a proposal to set aside 62 percent of projected budget surpluses over 15 years for Social Security's cash reserves. One-quarter of this amount would be invested by the Federal government in stock markets. The President proposed setting aside another 11 percent of projected surpluses to create individual retirement accounts, which would be in addition to Social Security and another 15 percent for Medicare. Among other things, the President proposed a number of new tax credits. His budget is expected to include various other tax, fee, and revenue increases.
The details of these proposals are expected to be released on February 1, 1999, when the President is scheduled to submit his fiscal year 2000 budget to the Congress.
In announcing the hearing, Chairman Archer stated: "I look forward to receiving the President's budget proposals. The President has already announced many interesting ideas and it's appropriate we review them in complete detail. I'm sure they will raise important questions for thoughtful discussion."
FOCUS OF THE HEARING:
The Committee will receive testimony on the President's fiscal year 2000 budget proposals from Secretary Rubin. The Secretary is expected to discuss the details of the President's proposals which are within the Committee's jurisdiction.
DETAILS FOR SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN COMMENTS:
Any person or organization wishing to submit a written statement for the printed record of the hearing should submit six (6) single-spaced copies of their statement, along with an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in WordPerfect 5.1 format, with their name, address, and hearing date noted on a label, by the close of business, Thursday, February 18, 1999, to A.L. Singleton, Chief of Staff, Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. House of Representatives, 1102 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515. If those filing written statements wish to have their statements distributed to the press and interested public at the hearing, they may deliver 200 additional copies for this purpose to the Committee office, room 1102 Longworth House Office Building, by close of business the day before the hearing.
FORMATTING REQUIREMENTS:
Each statement presented for printing to the Committee by a witness, any written statement or exhibit submitted for the printed record or any written comments in response to a request for written comments must conform to the guidelines listed below. Any statement or exhibit not in compliance with these guidelines will not be printed, but will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.
1. All statements and any accompanying exhibits for printing must be submitted on an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in WordPerfect 5.1 format, typed in single space and may not exceed a total of 10 pages including attachments. Witnesses are advised that the Committee will rely on electronic submissions for printing the official hearing record.
2. Copies of whole documents submitted as exhibit material will not be accepted for printing. Instead, exhibit material should be referenced and quoted or paraphrased. All exhibit material not meeting these specifications will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.
3. A witness appearing at a public hearing, or submitting a statement for the record of a public hearing, or submitting written comments in response to a published request for comments by the Committee, must include on his statement or submission a list of all clients, persons, or organizations on whose behalf the witness appears.
4. A supplemental sheet must accompany each statement listing the name, company, address, telephone and fax numbers where the witness or the designated representative may be reached. This supplemental sheet will not be included in the printed record.
The above restrictions and limitations apply only to material being submitted for printing. Statements and exhibits or supplementary material submitted solely for distribution to the Members, the press, and the public during the course of a public hearing may be submitted in other forms.
The
Committee seeks to make its facilities accessible to persons with
disabilities. If you are in need of special accommodations, please
call 202-225-1721 or 202-226-3411 TTD/TTY in advance of the event
(four business days notice is requested). Questions with regard to
special accommodation needs in general (including availability of
Committee materials in alternative formats) may be directed to the
Committee as noted above.