Many constituents throughout Southern Wisconsin have expressed to me that they are worried about our country’s economic future, and I certainly understand these concerns. Unfortunately, Washington has a spending problem so large that it is threatening our economic future by driving up our debt and hurting our nation’s ability to create jobs. Unless we act soon, government spending on health and retirement programs will crowd out spending on everything else, including national security. It will literally take every cent of every federal tax dollar to pay for these programs.

No one person or party is responsible for the looming crisis. Yet the facts are clear: major spending increases have failed to deliver promised jobs. The safety net for the poor is tearing apart at the seams. Government health and retirement programs are growing at unsustainable rates. The new health care law has created a tremendous fiscal burden. And a complex, inefficient tax code is holding back American families and businesses.

To comply with this inefficient tax code, individuals, families, and employers spend over six billion hours and over $160 billion per year trying to navigate the complicated deductions, credits, rules, definitions, and schedule for taxing income. The current tax system is too costly and too burdensome. Moreover, the tax code is unfair, as many of the deductions and preferences in the system are mainly used by a relatively small class of mostly higher-income individuals. Washington should not be in the business of picking winners and losers.

Earlier this year, the House passed FY2012 budget, the Path to Prosperity. Among many initiatives to bring our spending and debt under control, this budget addresses the problems within our current tax system in a pro-growth way by is letting individuals keep more of the money they earn, while getting rid of distortions, loopholes, and tax preferences.

The President proposes to raise the top tax rate to as much as 44.8 percent and his FY2012 budget proposal increases taxes by $1.5 trillion over the next ten years. This hurts job creation and economic growth because many small businesses, which drive our country’s economic growth and create over 50 percent of American jobs, pay this top tax rate. Rather than going after small businesses and the much-needed job creators in our economy, the Path to Prosperity lowers the current top tax rate of 35 percent to 25 percent. It also lowers the corporate tax rate to 25 percent, making U.S. businesses more competitive against their foreign competitors, who pay lower taxes, and keep jobs in America. In addition, the Path to Prosperity eliminates the deductions, credits, and special carve-outs that leave many companies paying no tax at all.

Many in Congress, however, continue to push for imposing tax increases on those making more than $200,000 a year and increasing taxes on companies’ profits. But if a 100% tax were imposed on all individual taxpayers making more than $200,000 and married couples making more than $250,000, it would only fund the federal government for 7.5 months. If a 100% tax were imposed on all profits of Fortune 500 companies, it would only fund the federal government for 40 days.

Washington does not revenue problem; it has a spending problem. At a time when families and small businesses are facing high gas prices and overall increases in the cost of living, the last thing taxpayers need right now or in the future is a tax increase. The House-passed budget removes the anchor of debt that weighs down our economy through pro-growth tax reforms that are simple, efficient, and fair; ensuring that the next generation inherits a stronger, more prosperous America. Though the Path to Prosperity passed in the House earlier this year, it failed in the Senate by a vote of 40-57. In contrast, the Senate Majority hasn’t bothered to pass a budget in over 800 days.  I look forward to their budget proposal so that we can begin to work together on solutions to the challenges facing our economic future.

To learn additional details about this budget, you are welcome to visit the House Budget Committee website at: http://www.budget.house.gov. Details on the Path to Prosperity itself can be found at: http://www.budget.house.gov/fy2012budget/.