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Archer, Roth Say Clinton Budget A Good Starting Point

Thursday, February 6, 1997

OnLine

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Archer, R-Texas, and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Bill Roth, R-Del., described President Clinton’s fiscal 1998 budget request as a good starting point.

"I will not consider it dead on arrival" because administration officials assure him that it is a "first offer," said Archer in a press release.

Roth said in a separate release, "I am pleased to say there is a substantial amount in President Clinton’s fiscal year 1998 budget for me to agree with in terms of our goals."

As for the proposals curtailing tax breaks, Roth noted that many similar provisions were enacted last year. As for this year, he said, "I will continue to purge tax code provisions which are abusive and I will review President Clinton’s revenue raisers later this year in the Finance Committee."

A long-time supporter of expanding Individual Retirement Accounts, Roth was pleased that the President included an expansion in his budget. On capital gains, Roth was less satisfied. "While I am pleased that President Clinton addressed the issue of capital gains relief, I think we should go further," he said.

Step in the right direction

"The President is moving in the direction of a balanced budget complete with some tax relief, although preliminary estimates indicate the budget has a multi-billion dollar gap in 2002," based on Congressional Budget Office estimates, Archer said.

Despite his optimism, Archer said room for improvement exists. The tax relief provided by the proposal is only temporary, while the tax hikes are permanent, "adding up to an excessive tax burden," Archer said.