I am always delighted to come back
home in August for the most extended District Work Period on the
Congressional Calendar. Well, yes, some in the Media like to cast this
4 to 5-week period as a “vacation” or
“recess.” But my staff will be among the first to tell you that August
is one of the busiest months of the year for
us.
This is our opportunity to get out into the community as much as possible, to meet with as many people as possible during Tele Town Halls or Live Town Halls – of which three are scheduled in the next 10 days in Elk Grove, Folsom and Carmichael (see the bar at the right for times, dates and locations).
Though my staff is constantly meeting with Sacramento-area business, government and community groups when I am back in Washington, August presents an opportunity to ramp up and get the kind of face-to-face reports that help inform my decisions and votes later.
Because I am so concerned about jobs and improving the unemployment
situation in our District, we continue to visit area businesses so we
could have frank discussions across the table about what is working and
what is frustrating the common desire to succeed, grow and
expand.
The businesses range from a family-owned Dry Cleaner in Elk Grove to the largest employer in the District, Folsom’s Intel Corp with its more than 6,000 employees.
When you really listen – and you are outside the Beltway of Washington – people are not shy about suggesting that the government needs to get out of the way. Regulations designed to help too often hinder efforts to grow.
One of our first stops was the Secret Garden in Elk Grove, which supplies the local community with items to beautify and enhance their gardens. The company recently moved from Old Town Elk Grove to a higher visibility location along Highway 99.
A small business with only a handful of employees, the owners are quite concerned about the all of the uncertainty that plagues business these days – not knowing what changes will be made and how those changes will affect them.
The impact of the Affordable Care Act and the removal of 2001 and 2003 tax cuts are just two issues that could impact small businesses – especially those who file taxes as individuals and not as a corporation. These businesses could be adversely affected by President Obama’s plan to let the cuts lapse for households with “incomes” of $250,000 or more. You see many small business file their taxes under individual rates not corporate ones. This is precisely why I have argued against raising taxes on anyone during these difficult economic times.
The good people who run the Secret Garden are not unlike the man-and-wife team that operates Moonlight Cleaners in Elk Grove. They are hardworking, dedicated people who care for their employees. At Moonlight they do all of their cleaning on site and they perform alterations.
It is not unusual for small business owners to face periods when they deny themselves their own salaries in order to make payroll for their employees. Owners work long days, often including weekends.
My colleagues in Washington are going to hear about the plight of these businesses when I return. I am continuing my visits at other community businesses in Folsom and Citrus Heights in the coming weeks and months.
Beyond all the statistics and number crunching of the bureaucrats, real lives and livelihoods are at stake.
Sincerely,
Daniel E. Lungren
Member of Congress
This is our opportunity to get out into the community as much as possible, to meet with as many people as possible during Tele Town Halls or Live Town Halls – of which three are scheduled in the next 10 days in Elk Grove, Folsom and Carmichael (see the bar at the right for times, dates and locations).
Though my staff is constantly meeting with Sacramento-area business, government and community groups when I am back in Washington, August presents an opportunity to ramp up and get the kind of face-to-face reports that help inform my decisions and votes later.
The businesses range from a family-owned Dry Cleaner in Elk Grove to the largest employer in the District, Folsom’s Intel Corp with its more than 6,000 employees.
When you really listen – and you are outside the Beltway of Washington – people are not shy about suggesting that the government needs to get out of the way. Regulations designed to help too often hinder efforts to grow.
One of our first stops was the Secret Garden in Elk Grove, which supplies the local community with items to beautify and enhance their gardens. The company recently moved from Old Town Elk Grove to a higher visibility location along Highway 99.
A small business with only a handful of employees, the owners are quite concerned about the all of the uncertainty that plagues business these days – not knowing what changes will be made and how those changes will affect them.
The impact of the Affordable Care Act and the removal of 2001 and 2003 tax cuts are just two issues that could impact small businesses – especially those who file taxes as individuals and not as a corporation. These businesses could be adversely affected by President Obama’s plan to let the cuts lapse for households with “incomes” of $250,000 or more. You see many small business file their taxes under individual rates not corporate ones. This is precisely why I have argued against raising taxes on anyone during these difficult economic times.
The good people who run the Secret Garden are not unlike the man-and-wife team that operates Moonlight Cleaners in Elk Grove. They are hardworking, dedicated people who care for their employees. At Moonlight they do all of their cleaning on site and they perform alterations.
It is not unusual for small business owners to face periods when they deny themselves their own salaries in order to make payroll for their employees. Owners work long days, often including weekends.
My colleagues in Washington are going to hear about the plight of these businesses when I return. I am continuing my visits at other community businesses in Folsom and Citrus Heights in the coming weeks and months.
Beyond all the statistics and number crunching of the bureaucrats, real lives and livelihoods are at stake.
Sincerely,
Daniel E. Lungren
Member of Congress
