Lankford: We Need to Change the Status Quo, Not Affirm It

Statement

Representative James Lankford issued the following statement today after he voted in opposition to the "tax extenders" bill before the House this evening:

"Two weeks ago, House Republicans and Senate Democrats were close to an agreement to make reasonable, measured changes to the tax code and address expiring provisions. The original conversation included a sunset for the Wind Production Tax Credit, a permanent change in the Section 179 farm and manufacturing equipment deduction and other important long-term tax changes to provide certainty for American businesses and people.

"Before the tax reform bill had an opportunity to come to the floor, the President threatened to veto it because it did not include a permanent extension of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). An expansion of the EITC could potentially make thousands of dollars of tax credits available to many of the illegal individuals that are now eligible for work permits under his recently announced executive action. The result of the President's refusal to do the hard work of negotiation and conversation with Congress is a tax bill that continues the Washington "status quo' of billions of dollars of credits to rum manufacturers, Hollywood movie studios, race track operators and wind farms. We need to change the status quo, not affirm it."

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