opening remarks

Circa 5:00 p.m., U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) will deliver opening remarks at today’s Senate Finance Committee meeting as the panel begins consideration of the Republican’s tax plan. Below is an advance copy of Nelson’s remarks as prepared for delivery. You can watch a live stream of the committee’s hearing here.
U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson
Opening Remarks on Tax Reform (as prepared for delivery)
Senate Finance Committee
Nov. 13, 2017
I want to talk about bipartisanship. It’s the best way to ensure a good outcome for ordinary Americans – and it’s what the American people want.
Is anyone proud of the way this process has been playing out?
Here we are, working on a major tax bill – a bill that will inevitably touch every single American in some way, shape, or form – and in some cases, in ways that even the drafters of the bill don’t know.
We are completely rewriting our tax code. Yet, we haven’t had any hearings on the bill. Or any time to seriously debate the slew of policy changes that will affect people’s everyday lives.
For example, we got word the other day that the Joint Committee on Taxation didn’t know if the new pass-through deduction in the Chairman’s mark includes business income made in Puerto Rico.
To me, that would seem like an important point we probably should get an answer on before we move forward.
My point is: this isn’t the way we ought to be operating. Everyone here knows it.
We should be working together to negotiate a truly bipartisan tax plan, instead of throwing this all together on the fly.
We have a duty to serve the American people to the best of our ability – and Mr. Chairman, I would suggest: we are better than this.
Working together in a bipartisan way is not a radical idea – at least, it shouldn’t be. We’ve done it before.
Mr. Chairman, how many times have we come together to find common ground and get something good done for the American people?
Just last year, we passed the Retirement Enhancement and Savings Act out of committee with a bipartisan vote of 26 to 0. It started with you and the Ranking Member hashing out differences to find a workable middle. Why can’t we do that again?
And let’s not forget the work we did in the Puerto Rico Task Force and on the identity theft-related tax fraud bill. It took months of bipartisan talks before we had a package that everyone could agree on – not just one party.
Is it too much to ask for this – a total rewrite of the tax code – to go through the same amount of rigor?
Senator Grassley, we worked together on the ACE Kids Act, which would create a national network of children’s hospitals and other providers to better serve kids needing specialized care.
Senator Cornyn, we’ve worked together to increase accountability at the VA, to honor helicopter air ambulance crews that served in Vietnam, and to help citrus growers struggling to deal with a plant disease known as citrus greening.
Senator Thune, you and I have partnered on so many issues in the Commerce Committee it’s hard to keep count. If anyone wants a good example of how we should be conducting ourselves, just look to how Senator Thune and I work together in the Commerce Committee.
Senator Burr, we partnered on a bill to help those affected by the water contamination at Camp Lejeune – not to mention the work we’ve done to stop the spread of the Zika virus. An issue I’ve also worked with Senator Cassidy on.
Senator Isakson, we worked together on several veterans’ issues, including a bill to improve VA opioid treatment practices.
You all get the picture. I could go all the way down the line citing examples of times when each of us crossed the partisan divide to do the people’s work. It doesn’t happen as much as I’d like. But it is possible.
We all want tax cuts for the middle class. We all want to help local small businesses. We all want to make the tax code simpler, fairer, more competitive, and more efficient.
But we should have a more deliberative process than this. One that is inclusive, and brings members from both parties into the process.
I am hopeful that this markup isn’t just for show and that some of our amendments will be given serious consideration. Because at the end of the day what we need is balance. That’s the focus of my amendments. And that should be the focus of this Committee.
I appreciate the work the Chairman and his staff have put into this.
All I’m asking is to give bipartisanship a chance.