During my past two weeks back home in Missouri, I have been energized by the level of interest folks have shown about the activities in Washington. Your level of engagement is critical to me because it helps me make informed decisions. Many of you also had questions on a variety of issues, so I decided to offer an overview of some of the pieces of legislation working their way through the process.

I recently co-sponsored H.R. 59, the Sunset All Czars Act, which would require Senate confirmation of czars who hold similar authority and power as cabinet officials but who have not undergone the same confirmation process. It is unconscionable to me that there are currently 30 czars appointed who have the ability to enact rules and regulations that could affect numerous industries.  I heard from a lot of angry people about these czars, and this legislation would prohibit using appropriated funds to pay for their salaries unless they go through the same scrutiny and accountability that a cabinet-level executive must go through.

Of course, the president’s health-care law continues to be a hot topic throughout the 9th District, which is why I was proud to co-sponsor H.R. 1549, the Homeowner Tax Fairness Act.   The president’s health-care law, whose constitutionality is currently being considered by the U.S. Supreme Court, includes a 3.8-percent tax on certain investment income of individuals earning over $200,000 and couples earning over $250,000.  The tax considers wages, salaries, business and farm income, home sales, realized capital gains and other passive and foreign-earned income.  This legislation, one of many bills seeking to defund or repeal the president’s health-care law, repeals the unearned income Medicare contribution portion of the health-care law, which includes the real-estate transaction tax.

Most of the folks I met with during my two weeks away from Washington had questions about jobs and the role of small businesses in getting our economy up and running again. For the last two years, I have been leading efforts to boost opportunities for our small businesses and this year I have co-sponsored H.R. 3219, the Small Business Investment Company Modernization and Improvement Act, legislation identical to a bill I previously introduced when I served on the House Small Business Committee.

The Small Business Investment Company Modernization and Improvement Act updates and streamlines the Small Business Administration’s largest investment program, the Small Business Investment Company program, by aiming to increase the number and size of investments made in small firms under the program. Additionally, this bill would halt the continued flight of SBICs that participate in the program by establishing an expedited licensing process. A broken licensing system, for far too long, has been cutting off capital to good small businesses. I know of a successful SBIC in Missouri that applied for a second license, and it took over a year, countless hours of paperwork and expensive legal bills. This legislation would provide a transparent process, clear standards, and a reasonable timeline for applicants. However, this bill also includes strong taxpayer protections, new background checks and proof of raised private capital would be required. Funds that have major regulatory problems or that are unable to raise private funds would not be able to get an expedited repeat license. 

I certainly appreciate all the personal feedback I received from you during my time back home in the district. I always feel refreshed and ready to get back to work after hearing directly from the people I represent as we work together to improve the quality of life for our families.