ADVISORY
FROM THE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS

Thomas Announces Hearing on President's Tax Relief Proposals

Congressman Bill Thomas (R-CA), Chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Committee will hold an additional hearing on President Bush's proposed tax relief provisions that affect individuals. The hearing will take place on Wednesday, March 21, 2001, in the main Committee hearing room, 1100 Longworth House Office Building, beginning at 10:00 a.m.

Oral testimony at this hearing will be from invited witnesses only. 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 February 8, 2001, President Bush released his "Agenda for Tax Relief" that includes doubling the child credit, relief of the marriage tax penalty, and repeal of the death tax.

On February 13, 2001, the Committee held a hearing on President Bush's tax relief proposals. On March 1, the Committee on Ways and Means ordered favorably reported H.R. 3, the "Economic Growth and Tax Relief Act of 2001," a bill reducing individual income tax rates, with a new 12 percent rate taking effect on January 1, 2001. On March 8, 2001, H.R. 3 passed the House by a vote of 230 to 198.

In announcing the hearing, Chairman Thomas stated: "Now that the House has passed the heart of President Bush's tax relief plan -- the permanent reduction in individual income tax rates -- we will now turn to fixing other problems in the tax code. Married couples shouldn't pay more in taxes just because they're married. People shouldn't pay more taxes when they die. And more families could benefit by doubling the $500 per child tax credit. In summary, we are just beginning to provide real and lasting tax relief to the American people who pay the bills, and I look forward to hearing from the witnesses about the need for further tax relief. "

FOCUS OF THE HEARING:

The focus of this hearing will be the President's tax relief proposals, other than permanent marginal rate reduction, with particular emphasis on marriage penalty relief, death tax repeal, and doubling the child credit.

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 or MS Word format, with their name, address, and hearing date noted on a label, by the close of business, Thursday, March 22, 2001, to Allison Giles, 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 or MS Word 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.

Note: All Committee advisories and news releases are available on the World Wide Web at http://waysandmeans.house.gov.

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.