November 19th, 2007
Washington, DC – Congressman Ron Paul has signed on as co-sponsor to a long overdue piece of legislation that would increase the capital gains exemption amount for real estate transactions. Paul said, “The investment in a home is often the largest investment average Americans will ever make. They rely on appreciation and equity in that home for financial security throughout their lives. It is morally wrong and economically unwise to take massive amounts of that investment out of the economy in capital gains taxes.”
HR 4132 is necessary because housing prices are up 104% since the $250,000 per single/$500,000 per couple exemption was established in 1997, and this would be the first adjustment. The new exemption amount would be $500,000 in gains for a single tax return filer, $1,000,000 for joint filers.
“With rising inflation and the sub-prime mortgage fallout softening the real estate market throughout the country, it’s time for Congress to adjust tax policy and give American homeowners some good news,” stated Congressman Paul.
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November 9th, 2007
Mr. Chairman, I am introducing this bill in response to HR 3956, which would unconstitutionally delegate the authority to determine the metal content of coins to the Secretary of the Treasury. While I am concerned at the high cost of minting pennies, I am not entirely convinced that the Mint needs to mint as many pennies as it does. Over the past 30 years, over 300 billion pennies have been minted, more than twice as many coins as all other denominations combined. This is over 1,000 pennies for each man, woman, and child in this country.
I find it hard to believe that with this many pennies having been minted, we still have a shortage of pennies. My bill would prohibit the minting of pennies until the Treasury and Federal Reserve certify that there is no surplus of pennies. If there is a surplus of pennies, it makes no sense for the Mint to continue to coin them if each penny costs more than one cent to produce. If there really were a shortage, the onus would be on the Treasury and Fed to conduct their survey in a timely fashion in order to facilitate further penny production.
In the event of a shortage I would urge my colleagues to consider Mr. Roskam’s HR 4036, which addresses the cost issue by changing the composition of pennies while maintaining the Congressional control and oversight mandated by the Constitution.
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November 8th, 2007
Mr. Chairman, our economy finds itself in a precarious state. Oil prices are rising, gold is nearing all-time highs, and the dollar is nearing all-time lows. The root of this crisis, as with past financial and economic crises, results from federal government intervention into the economy, not to anything endemic to the market, nor to the the actions of market participants.
The collapse of the housing market has served as a catalyst for the economy’s latest bust. For years the federal government has made it one of its prime aims to encourage homeownership among people who otherwise would not be able to afford homes. Various federal mortgage programs through the FHA, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac have distorted the normal workings of the housing market.
The implicit government backing of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac provides investors an incentive to provide funds to Fannie and Freddie that otherwise would have been put to use in other sectors of the economy. It was this flood of investor capital that helped to fuel the housing bubble.
Legislation such as the Zero Downpayment Act and the misnamed American Dream Downpayment Act made it possible for people who could not afford down payments on houses to receive assistance from the federal government, or even to pay no down payment at all, courtesy of the taxpayers. The requirement of a down payment has always helped to ascertain the ability of a buyer to pay off a mortgage. It requires the buyer to show hard work and thrift, the ability to delay present consumption in order to make a larger acquisition in the future.
When this requirement is minimized or eliminated, you introduce a new class of homebuyers, people who are unable to budget and save for the purchase of a home, or who should wait for a few years until they have saved enough to purchase a home. Federal policies have encouraged investors, lenders, and brokers to cater to these people, so it is no surprise that market actors came up with ever more sophisticated means of bringing these people into the real estate market.
Finally, the Federal Reserve’s loose monetary policy and lowering of interest rates were a major spur to the housing boom. Low interest rates influence marginal buyers, those who are sitting on the fence, and encourage them to take on a mortgage that they otherwise would not. Even when interest rates are raised, no one expects them to stay high for long, as there is always pressure from politicians and investors to keep rates low, as no one wants the cheap credit to end.
Thinking that interest rates will cycle from low to higher, back to low, lenders begin to offer adjustable rate mortgages, 2/28′s, 3/27′s, and other sophisticated mortgages that may trap many unsavvy buyers. Buyers go short, lenders go long, and many people have been burned as a result.
It is time that the federal government get out of the housing business. Through our interventionist legislation we have caused the boom and bust, and any attempts at reform that fail to address the causes of our current problem will only sow the seeds for the next bubble.
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November 6th, 2007
Madame Speaker, I rise to introduce legislation that allows the transportation and sale in interstate commerce of unpasteurized milk and milk products, as long as the milk both originates from and is shipped to states that allow the sale of unpasteurized milk and milk products. This legislation removes an unconstitutional restraint on farmers who wish to sell unpasteurized milk and milk products, and people who wish to consume unpasteurized milk and milk products.
My office has heard from numerous people who would like to purchase unpasteurized milk. Many of these people have done their own research and come to the conclusion that unpasteurized milk is healthier than pasteurized milk. These Americans have the right to consume these products without having the federal government second-guess their judgment about what products best promote health. If there are legitimate concerns about the safety of unpasteurized milk, those concerns should be addressed at the state and local level.
I urge my colleagues to join me in promoting consumers’ rights, the original intent of the Constitution, and federalism by cosponsoring my legislation to allow the interstate sale of unpasteurized milk and milk product
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November 5th, 2007
Washington, DC – Congressman Ron Paul, has signed on to co-sponsor legislation that will give immediate estate tax relief so Americans will not lose the family farm, home, or small business when they experience a death in the family.
Currently, the estate tax is in year 6 of a slow 9 year phase out culminating in 2010 when the estate tax will be completely repealed. If no action is taken, in 2011 the estate tax will reset to pre-tax cut levels, which will mean estates worth more than $1 million (or close to that amount) will again be taxed at a rate of 55%.
Major provisions of The Family Farm, Small Business, and Home Tax Relief Act:
- Increase the estate tax exemption amount from $2 million (2007 levels) to $3.5 (indexed for inflation) million and holds the tax rate at 45%, thus implementing immediately the forthcoming 2009 estate tax levels.
- Exempt a small business or family farm up to $8 million (indexed for inflation) from calculation of estate tax value.
- Exempt one principle residence up to $2 million (indexed for inflation) from calculation of estate tax value.
- Repeals the generation skipping tax (GST) immediately. The GST is scheduled for repeal in 2010.
“It is patently un-American to tax workers all their lives on the fruits of their labor, and then still take sizeable chunks of what’s left at the end that rightfully belongs to their families. It is an insult to what this country stands for. When a family has just lost someone, it is not right that the government puts them out of their home, farm or business as well,” stated Congressman Paul.
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