Taxed at every turn

Each year, April 15 serves as the dreaded deadline for all Americans to file their taxes. Nebraskans, especially small business owners, spend hours going through their records to fill out the necessary forms and meet the IRS' seemingly endless reporting requirements. An estimate from the National Taxpayer Advocate last year indicates Americans collectively spend 6.1 billion hours and $168 billion on efforts to navigate our confusing tax code and file taxes.

Hardworking Americans -- including many who work two or three jobs to support their families -- shouldn't be expected to dedicate countless hours to comply with these burdensome requirements, or spend their money to hire expensive accountants.

When the income tax was ratified in 1913, the entire tax code was 400 pages. Today's code and related rules now total more than 73,000 pages. While these regulations cause stress and frustration for families, they also create financial hardships that hold back businesses and job creators.

Tax Day is an annual reminder that our complex tax laws desperately need reforms. I remain committed to promoting a simpler, fairer system that provides certainty and encourages economic growth. To do so, I have been working on a number of specific legislative proposals that provide relief for families and job creators. These efforts include legislation to stop new taxes and eliminate misguided taxes already on the books.

For example, I cosponsored legislation to prevent the Obama administration from bypassing Congress to enact a costly national energy tax. If implemented, the president's energy tax plan would jeopardize valuable jobs and raise electricity prices for all Nebraska families.

As a cosponsor of the Tax Freedom Forever Act, I have also worked to prohibit fresh taxation that could stall progress in needed broadband development. This legislation bans any new taxes on Internet access, as well as multiple or discriminatory taxes on electronic commerce.

As more and more consumers spend their time and money online, expanded Internet access is increasingly essential to help businesses stay competitive and foster growth. Improved broadband access is also critical for promoting public safety. Rather than hindering growth with more taxes for more wasteful spending, the federal government should work to help both rural and urban communities update their aging and incomplete infrastructure.

The nearly century-old death tax is especially harmful as it taxes hardworking Americans twice -- once when they earn their money, and again when they give it away. Family farmers, ranchers, and small business owners -- our chief job creators -- are hit hardest by the death tax, which undermines their ability to pass along thriving businesses to future generations. That's why I cosponsored the Death Tax Repeal Act to permanently eliminate it from our tax code.

This year, April 15 was also the deadline for some Americans to sign up for government-approved health coverage, as required under ObamaCare. Unfortunately, many families will be forced to pay a penalty tax simply because they were unable to find affordable plans. Rather than lowering costs as promised, ObamaCare has caused millions of Americans to face higher premiums and diminished access to doctors they like. But it's not just the individual mandate tax -- there are over 20 new or increased taxes in ObamaCare, a law I remain committed to repealing and replacing with commonsense, patient-centered reforms.

These examples hardly scratch the surface of how our current tax policies are hurting Nebraska families and job creators. Moreover, the vast majority of economists agree that the single best way to create jobs and generate economic growth is through comprehensive tax reform -- an issue I assumed would be at the top of our agenda when I arrived in Washington. Unfortunately, the Democrat leader in the Senate has not made it a top priority. Despite the lack of progress, I stand ready to work with my colleagues to make needed reforms. It's hard work, but it's why Nebraskans sent me here in the first place.

Thank you for taking part in our democratic process, and I'll visit with you again next week.