Rep. Tom Cotton The House Financial Services Committee has been working hard to protect Arkansans from government overreach and to protect small banks against the unregulated CFPB. This week, the Committee held a mark-up of several bills, one of which addressed the CFPB’s misguided definition of “rural” for the purpose of mortgage lending by banks. The Bureau’s published definition was, unsurprisingly, a one-size-fits-all policy that would not have worked for many parts of Arkansas. The regulation would prevent community banks from issuing mortgages such as balloon loans, or other responsibly underwritten products. The House Foreign Affairs Committee has also had a busy few weeks. We’ve been monitoring the ongoing situation in Ukraine very carefully, and last week we held a hearing on the matter. This week, the House also passed a resolution condemning the violation of Ukrainian sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity by military forces of the Russian Federation. Additionally, Secretary of State Kerry testified before the Committee on Thursday about the State Department’s annual budget request. From the House Floor H.R. 311: The Farmers Undertake Environmental Land Stewardship (FUELS) Act This week, the House passed fellow Arkansas Congressman Rick Crawford’s bill to ease fuel tank regulations on Arkansas’s farmers. Currently, farmers are forced to obtain certification of compliance with the EPA’s oil spill regulations by a professional engineer—an unnecessary and costly process. Under this bill, farms with small, aboveground oil storage and no history of spills would be allowed to self-certify their compliance. H.R. 3473: Hire More Heroes Act Under Obamacare, employers are penalized if they employ veterans who receive healthcare through the VA or TRICARE and do not offer those employees separate healthcare coverage. This legislation exempts employers from this penalty, incentivizing them to hire more veterans. The men and women who serve in our military learn important tangible and intangible skills that make them model employees and an asset to any business. H.R. 3979: Protecting Volunteer Firefighters and Emergency Responders Obamacare’s employer mandate could increase costs and ultimately close the doors of volunteer fire departments across Arkansas by requiring them to provide healthcare to their volunteers. This legislation permanently exempts volunteer fire departments from this mandate—providing them with the certainty they need to continue protecting local communities. H.R. 4138: ENFORCE the Law Act of 2014 Laws are laws and the President of the United States cannot simply pick and chose which of those laws he wants to enforce. The ENFORCE Act allows Congress to bring a lawsuit against the executive branch if they fail to faithfully execute the laws. H.R. 4015: Sustainable Growth Rate Repeal and Medicare Provider Payment Modernization Act of 2014 Because of an outdated mechanism used to control Medicare spending, Doctors annually face a drastic cut in their reimbursements for treating Medicare patients. Each year, Congress has passed a temporary “fix” to these cuts but never dealt with the problem. This bill ensures doctors will be paid for curing an illness, not just ordering tests. Most importantly, it provides a 10-year window of stability for doctors and patients. To pay for repealing this outdated policy, we will legally delay the individual mandate for Obamacare. Rep. Tom Cotton speaks at a Service Academy Forum Night in Hot Springs Fighting Back Against Obamacare Arkansans remain overwhelmingly opposed to Obamacare—and they should. Under this law they are seeing their healthcare premiums rise and their hours cut. In this new newsletter section, I will keep you apprised of my fight against this unworkable law. Medicare Advantage provides high quality, affordable healthcare to nearly 20 percent of Arkansas seniors. But if President Obama and his liberal allies have their way, our seniors will see just the opposite: higher costs and reduced benefits. The President’s namesake legislation, Obamacare, cut more than $200 billion from Medicare Advantage payments. These cuts combined with other changes to the program, resulted in payment cuts of 6 percent in 2014. And the vast majority of Obamacare’s cuts haven’t even gone into effect, meaning things are only going to get worse! Now, the Obama Administration is proposing additional cuts to Medicare Advantage that would raise Arkansas seniors monthly healthcare payments by up to $45 and further reduce access to care. This week, I joined my colleagues in sending a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Marilyn Tavenner, urging CMS to keep 2015 Medicare Advantage payments rates at 2014 levels. Rest assured, I will fight to save the Medicare Advantage program for Arkansas’s seniors.
Posted on: Thu, 20 Mar 2014 20:31:21 +0000
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