Promoting Job Creation and Reducing Small Business Burdens Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, the legislation we are being asked to vote on today is identical to legislation that failed on the suspension calendar last week--and so is now being brought back to the floor under a closed rule, without possibility of amendment. I opposed this bill on both policy and procedural grounds last week, and because nothing has fundamentally changed on either score, I will do so again today.

Mr. Speaker, this unwieldy legislation is comprised of eleven, mostly unrelated titles--a few of which I have supported in the past, some of which I probably could support on a freestanding basis in the future and several of which either need a lot more work or simply should not be supported. In particular, as an advocate of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act, I think we should tread very carefully before modifying or weakening something as central to financial reform as the Volcker Rule, which Title VIII of this legislation would do with respect to collateralized debt obligations. Additionally, while I am strongly in favor of giving employees more ownership opportunities in the companies they work for, I also believe those employees deserve to know the value of the stock they are being offered, and that is something Title XI of this bill fails to do.

For these reasons, I urge a no vote.

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