Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: Tax Reform, Energy Growth Hot Topics for Rep. Mike Kelly

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By Bill Vidonic

The 114th Congress gets under way Jan. 3, and with Republicans set to control the House and Senate, it's time to show the American people that the federal government can govern, U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly said.

"I'm excited about this next year," said Kelly, a Butler Republican. "We have not had a Senate we could work with in six years. I'm hoping that the results of (the general election) sent a message to both sides, that the American people want to see a body that can govern."

During an interview with the Tribune-Review, Kelly outlined his priorities for the upcoming session. He will continue to serve on the influential Ways and Means Committee, which is the chief tax-writing committee of the House, and serve on the human resources, oversight and Social Security subcommittees. Kelly represents Pennsylvania's Third Congressional District, which stretches from Erie south to Butler County and portions of neighboring Armstrong County.

The country needs tax reform, he said, including simplifying the tax code into "something much flatter and much fairer," while also offering corporate tax reform, saying that U.S. companies have "the highest corporate tax in the world," at about 39 percent, factoring in state taxes.

A medical device tax adopted as part of the health care package should be eliminated, as it's hurting medical companies.

"If we pull together, we can make 2015 the year we restore our nation of builders," Kelly said.

Kelly, who owns a Butler car dealership, was first elected to Congress in 2010. House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio picked him to deliver the Republican weekly address Dec. 20 in response to President Obama's, an assignment of which Kelly said he was "sincerely honored."

"There's no doubt his stature is growing in Congress. People are really starting to pay attention to the issues he espouses," said Jeff Brauer, a professor of political science at Keystone College in Lackawanna County. Brauer added that energy independence is Kelly's biggest issue.

"He's really made a name for himself in that sphere," Brauer said. "He's giving great speeches, getting standing ovations. To have a spokesperson like that, the (Republican) leadership is appreciative of that and is rewarding him accordingly."

Kelly focused on energy growth in his weekly address, saying that 40,000 jobs in Pennsylvania alone were tied to the coal industry. He used a lump of coal as a prop.

"... No other nation in the world has been blessed with such abundant, affordable and accessible resources," Kelly said. "And with what God has given us, we shouldn't be just trying to keep up with the pack. My goodness, we should be leading the world."

He said two coal-fired power plants within his district have closed in the past two years because of federal clean-air regulations.

"So whether it's stopping these regulations, expediting infrastructure or expanding production, there's so much more we can do to encourage the development of all forms of American energy," Kelly said in the address.

Kelly told the Trib he supports the Keystone XL Pipeline project, which he said could create upward of 50,000 construction jobs and many ancillary jobs. A pipeline would run between Canada and Nebraska, connecting with existing pipe. Delays may have hurt it, Kelly added.

"We're running against the clock as the cost of energy goes down," he said.

Kelly criticized Obama's handling of the immigration issue, granting amnesty through executive orders rather than Congress approving changes in the law.

"Americans want to see immigration reform, not general amnesty," he said. "There are 4 million people awaiting citizenship, and you don't say to them, "You just should have stayed in the shadows and you should have waited. We would have given you a free pass.' "

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