Jobs

Two-Month Payroll Tax Extension Would Cause “Substantial Problems” for U.S. Employers: Independent analysis released today shows that a two-month payroll extension would complicate tax compliance and increase costs for job creators. According to the National Payroll Reporting Consortium (NPRC), “HR 3630 as written could create substantial problems, confusion and costs affecting a significant percentage of U.S. employers and employees.”  With unemployment above 8 percent for 34 straight months, now is certainly not the time to add confusing and costly new compliance problems for job-creators. House Republicans agree with President Obama when he says “it would be inexcusable for Congress not to further extend this middle class tax cut for the rest of the year.”

Spending

Fully-Offset, One-Year Payroll/UI Extension Rejected by White House: Last Tuesday, House Republicans approved a fully-offset, one-year extension of the payroll tax cut and Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits that would protect working Americans from a tax increase without adding to the job-crushing national debt.  Now, the president opposes a bill that would offset the cost of extending these provisions with commonsense spending cuts, 90 percent of which have also been proposed by President Obama.

Medicare

Democrats Oppose Limiting Medicare Subsidies to Millionaires:  Last week, House Republicans voted to adopt President Obama’s recommendation to increase Medicare Part B and D premiums for high-income beneficiaries in an effort to offset the costs of extending payroll tax rates and UI.  The president has now done a politically motivated about-face and threatened to veto the reforms that would improve the financial stability of the Medicare program by reducing the Federal subsidy of Medicare costs for those beneficiaries who can most afford them.