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Economy

 


Congresswoman Tsongas visiting with workers


Overview

Job growth is a major factor in building our economy. Far too many Americans, many here in the Third District, find themselves out of work or are worried about losing their job. I believe that Congress must show much greater urgency in helping the millions of workers who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own and have not been able to find a new one in this persistently difficult economy. There are many commonsense and traditionally bipartisan steps that we should take in order to help get our economy moving again and help people get back to work.

Supporting research and development in modern technology and investing in domestic manufacturing are ways we can bring jobs back to U.S. and keep our nation at the forefront of discovery and progress.

Furthermore, we must balance the budget.  Congress needs to seek a comprehensive deficit reduction package that makes smart, targeted cuts that do not deplete critical funding from programs that are essential to our well-being, economic competitiveness, and national security – like training for US servicemembers so we’re prepared for future threats—and looking for new revenue to ensure that everyone pays a fair share in investing in our country’s success. 

Strengthening America’s economy is a top priority and I will continue to work across the aisle to arrive at a balanced solution.


Jobs

Reducing unemployment and growing jobs in America is a cornerstone for strengthening our economy.  When President Obama assumed office after the financial crash, we were losing 800,000 jobs in one month.  Passage of the American Recovery Act a few months later, at the height of the recession, helped stop the freefall in our economy and save and create jobs. 

From early 2010 to the beginning of 2014, there have been over 8 million jobs added to the private sector. But we still have a lot of work to do to support workers’ rights and keep jobs here on American soil. Our country should find ways to further support domestic manufacturing and encourage nascent industries that are developing cutting-edge innovation, such as defense and clean energy technologies. The Third District of Massachusetts and surrounding region has been growing into a hub for this kind of innovation, bringing together the area’s academic, business and government resources to create jobs and develop state-of-the-art products.


Small Business

From the woman who runs a business out of her home, to the firm with 200 employees that designs high-tech products for the Defense Department, our small businesses serve vastly divergent markets and have differing needs. Historically, small businesses help bring economies out of recession, are highly motivated to be innovative, and create a significant percentage of new jobs.

Please visit my small business page detailing steps I have taken to support small growth companies in the Third District.


A Balanced Budget

For our economy to regain its footing, we must balance our national budget and generate long-term deficit reduction. The only way to do so is to combine targeted spending cuts with new revenue sources, just as every bipartisan group that has looked at this problem has suggested.  That is why I have consistently voted for budgets that take just such a balanced approach to deficit reduction and have called on Republican leaders in the House to negotiate with their Senate counterparts to achieve the same.  The American people deserve open debate on this critical national issue.

Unless Republican leaders agree to negotiations, sequestration, the across-the-board government cuts that first went into effect in March 2013 (before being moderately reduced for two years by the Bipartisan Budget Act) will once again come into full effect. Though more visible to some than others, sequestration has already caused widespread harm to American families, both through job loss and arbitrary cuts to programs that Americans rely on every day, and will continue to do so throughout its scheduled 10-year duration unless Congress takes action. Sequestration was intended to be motivation for Congress to pass a balanced budget, but instead has become a danger to our economy.

Learn more about the impact of sequestration by clicking here.


Tax Reforms

I strongly support comprehensive tax reform to close loopholes that allow some of the most profitable U.S. corporations and individuals to avoid paying their fair share.  Every taxpayer deserves the certainty of knowing that the code is straightforward and fair and that everyone is contributing a fair share.  That is why I have consistently cosponsored and voted for legislation to eliminate tax incentives that reward companies for moving overseas, eliminating jobs in the US, or hiding their income. 

But I have also led efforts around smaller, common sense reforms:

  • In 2013, I introduced the Making Work and Marriage Pay Act with Rep. Tom Petri (R-WI) to remove provisions in federal law that serve as barriers preventing low-income families from working or marrying.  Government should be encouraging low-income families to seek out career advancement, not creating confusing and counterproductive benefit structures. This bill is an important first step toward better coordinating federal work policy and helping American families avoid the poverty trap.
  • Likewise in 2013, I introduced the SERV Act to provide tax relief to senior volunteers.  Under Massachusetts state law, cities and towns in the Commonwealth can choose to offer up to $1,000 in property tax abatement to senior citizens who volunteer a certain number of hours in service to their communities.  This successful decade-old program has benefitted both senior volunteers and their communities, and has been discussed as a model for other states to follow.  However, the IRS deems this abatement as taxable income, requiring each participating town to treat its senior volunteers as employees and file corresponding paperwork for them. The revenue collected as a result is negligible, but the bureaucratic headache for participating towns is significant, and has become an impediment to participation.  The solution is the SERV Act, which exempts the abatement received by senior volunteers from counting for federal tax purposes.  This bill would provide property tax relief that can help seniors stay in their homes and, just as important, relieve towns from the burdens of unnecessary paperwork.
  • In previous Congresses, I have introduced bipartisan legislation to provide tax relief to small business owners during the recession, led the successful effort to fix errors in the code that were preventing certain military servicemembers from receiving their tax refunds, and pushed for the elimination of tax laws like 1099 reporting requirements and mandatory 3% withholding for state and local contractors that created undue burdens on small businesses.
  • Similarly, I have been a strong and consistent supporter of making the R&D tax credit permanent in ways that responsibly do not add to the deficit. Massachusetts is one of the top research and development economies in the world, ranking first among states for patents, R&D, and Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) awards per capita, according to the Journal of New England Technology. As one Third District company wrote to me, “The R&D tax credit greatly helps smaller companies like mine as it helps level the playing field when competing in the global market. We are able invest more into R&D knowing that the short term cost is less and the return on investment will be quicker, and that in turn helps us to grow here.”  That is why when House Republicans brought a tax bill to the floor that would have extended the credit, but only by increasing the deficit by over 100 billion dollars, I led a letter signed by my House colleagues urging them to allow members of Congress to amend tax bills in order to reduce the deficit.

Read my letter to Speaker Boehner: Let us vote


Economic Development

Growth in the national economy begins with growth in our cities and towns here in Massachusetts Third District. I have been a strong supporter of economic development projects across the region, exploring options, helping to secure federal funding and bringing together stakeholders from all avenues to ensure projects move forward. My office works hard to support federal funding for local development projects, but also for local organizations, such as health centers, fire departments and academic institutions, in order to fill in the blanks and kick-start economic growth.  The following are just two examples of projects I have strongly supported and will have a significant economic impact on our region.   

Hamilton Canal District

The City of Lowell, for example, has undertaken several initiatives in recent years, which have led to its extraordinary transformation. It began when the Lowell National Historical Park was established within the city’s core, the first urban national park of its kind in the United States.  I have strongly supported public investment in the Park, which has leveraged millions in private investment in the redevelopment of Lowell’s historic Hamilton Canal District. Fifteen acres of vacant and underutilized land in the Jackson, Appleton, and Middlesex Street area known as the Hamilton Canal District are being redeveloped into a vibrant, mixed-use neighborhood spanning the Merrimack, Pawtucket and Hamilton Canals. When complete, the Hamilton Canal District in the heart of Lowell will create nearly two million square feet for commercial, retail, and housing space, as well as hundreds of new jobs and an estimated $400 million in annual tax revenue for the City.

I authored legislation passed into law that allows the City of Lowell to continue with development of the Hamilton Canal District Project by exchanging land with the Lowell National Historical Park.  During discussion of this bill in the Natural Resources Committee, the Republican full and subcommittee chairmen both praised it.  Rep. Rob Bishop (R-UT), called it a “great bill” that would spur economic development in the community.

Click here to visit the Lowell National Historical Park website

I-93 Project

The I-93 interchange project has the potential to create thousands of jobs in the Merrimack Valley. In 2010, I invited U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood to visit the district. He indicated his support for moving the interchange project forward.  The Secretary facilitated an agreement with all parties on a final design of the interchange and the environmental review process is now underway.  The I-93 Junction development area has one of the largest concentrations of employment in northeastern Massachusetts and is considered one of the economic development “hubs” for life sciences and high-tech companies in Massachusetts.  Estimates for new job growth from the I-93 project are close to 10,000 employees, $400-$800 million in new payroll, $30-$60 million in new state taxes and $4-$6 million in local property taxes.  Previously, my office helped to obtain a $712,500 federal appropriation that will be used for the design and construction of the new interchange.

Read more about this project

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