McCarthy: district tour reveals businesses tired of burdensome regulations

 Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) submits his weekly view from Capitol Hill. In his words:

"It was great to be back in California this week.

  "One of the highlights this week was visiting Liberty High School and talking to some of the students there. It is this generation that will bear the biggest burden if we do not take immediate action to get our deficits and debt under control and I was honored to spend time with them. The students asked many insightful questions on topics ranging from health care to the Middle East.

  "For those who do not know, a federal judge in Florida this week ruled that the President’s health care law is unconstitutional because of a mandate that requires every American to purchase health care.  This week the Senate was in session and took a vote to repeal the government health care law.  Unfortunately, it failed by a vote of 47 to 51, but a bipartisan measure did pass a repeal of the 1099 reporting requirement. The House also has a bill (H.R 4) which I have cosponsored, to repeal this burdensome mandate that requires small businesses to file a 1099 tax form with the IRS for any purchases made of $600 or more.

  "I also took part in a town hall discussion with local small business owners to learn more about their concerns at the family owned business Abate-A-Weed.  Their message – stop the burdensome regulations coming out of Washington and Sacramento.  People want to keep more of their hard earned dollars to invest in their companies and have the ability to hire more employees.  Our local small businesses are the engine of our economy, and as we work to cut spending and reform our regulations, businesses like Abate-A-Weed should always be at the front of our minds.

  "I also met with Governor Jerry Brown in Sacramento this week.  While I believe Governor Brown has the state’s best interest in mind, we disagree on how to get there.  In Washington, we are trying to cut wasteful government spending and also grow the economy.  I don’t believe that families and small businesses across our state can afford $9 billion in tax hikes right now, especially when we have the second highest unemployment rate (12.3%) in the nation.‪ Our state needs jobs and we need to work to attract entrepreneurs back to our state – raising taxes is not the answer.

  "I finished off the week with a visit to San Luis Obispo County on Friday and was able to visit with students at Paso Robles High School and a local small business.  It was a great time and I hope everyone enjoys the Super Bowl this Sunday.