Madam Chairman, thank you for this opportunity to speak before the Joint Economic Committee. Since its creation by the Employment Act of 1946, the JEC has been the premier congressional forum to discuss economic policy, and as a former staff member of the committee I am honored to participate in this hearing.
   
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WASHINGTON, D.C. – The share of total federal income taxes paid by the top 1 percent of tax filers increased to 39.89 percent in 2006, while the tax share of the top 5 percent climbed to 60.14 percent.  The income tax share of the top half rose to 97.01 percent, according to Internal Revenue Service (IRS) data.  The tax shares are the highest on record for these groups based on comparable IRS data going back to 1986.
   
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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressional Budget Office (CBO) show that the total effective tax rate of the middle fifth of households declined after 2001 to its lowest levels since at least 1979, Congressman Jim Saxton, ranking member of the Joint Economic Committee, said today. Under the 2001 and 2003 tax relief legislation, the income tax as a share of income for the middle fifth also has fallen to its lowest levels in decades.
   
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WASHINGTON, D.C. – According to a key Census Bureau measure, income inequality has been unchanged since 2000.  The Census Bureau recently confirmed that no statistically significant change in the inequality measure occurred between 2000 and 2007, the last year for which data are available.  The measure referred to here is known as the Gini coefficient, a standard gauge of income inequality published by the Census Bureau and widely used by economists and other researchers.
   
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The unemployment rate rose to 6.1% in August, from 5.7% in July and 5.5% in May and June. Payroll employment declined for the 8th consecutive month in August, by 84,000 jobs. Despite weakness in labor markets, revised data on the inflation-adjusted (real) gross domestic product (GDP) show that growth accelerated in the 2nd quarter. Annualized 2nd-quarter GDP growth was 3.3%, up from 0.9% in the 1st quarter and an annualized 0.2% decline in the 4th quarter of 2007. Growth in the 2nd quarter may have benefited from stimulus-payment effects on consumer spending, but was unambiguously boosted by international trade: net exports contributed 3.1 percentage points to overall 2nd-quarter growth. Residential investment declines continued to weigh on growth. In light of the continued adjustments in the housing sector and financial markets, Treasury placed mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in conservatorship, giving management control to their regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA).
   
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The unemployment rate rose to 5.7%, in July, up from 5.5% in May and June and up from a near-term low of 4.4% in March of 2007. Payroll employment declined for the seventh consecutive month in July (by 51,000 jobs) and revised data on the inflation-adjusted (real) gross domestic product (GDP) show that real GDP declined in the 4th quarter of 2007, raising concerns about a recession. Perhaps buoyed by stimulus-payment effects on consumer spending, GDP growth was 1.9% in the 2nd quarter, up from 0.9% growth in the 1st quarter. Private forecasters see positive, though sluggish, growth throughout this year and a return toward more trend-like growth of close to 3.0% by the end of 2009. In light of rising risks of higher inflation, the Fed ended its recent campaign of cutting short-term interest rates at its policymaking meeting in late June, keeping its target overnight interest rate at 2.00%. Housing market adjustments continue.

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It is a pleasure to join in welcoming the panel of witnesses before us today.  We are all concerned about the increases in the cost of living that threaten to erode American living standards.  

As I talk to my constituents in New Jersey, the number one concern on their minds is the high cost of oil and gasoline.  This year, the oil price has risen about 40 percent so far, with further price increases a distinct possibility.  These higher energy costs leave families with less money to cover other expenses, such as food.  Of course, rising food prices also reflect higher costs for fertilizer, transportation, packaging, and the impact of our ethanol tariff, among other things.  As a first step we should repeal the ethanol tariff, and also seek to produce more energy here in the United States. 

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – The share of total federal income taxes paid by the top 1 percent of tax filers increased to 39.89 percent in 2006, while the tax share of the top 5 percent climbed to 60.14 percent.  The income tax share of the top half rose to 97.01 percent, according to recent Internal Revenue Service (IRS) data.  The tax shares are the highest on record for these groups based on comparable IRS data going back to 1986. 

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WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The OPEC oil cartel’s attempt to blame high oil prices on the lower foreign exchange value of the dollar is refuted in a new study released today by Congressman Jim Saxton, ranking Republican member of the Joint Economic Committee (JEC).  The new staff study, The Dollar and Oil, analyzes a number of factors contributing to high oil prices, including the cartel’s supply restrictions and inadequate investments made by members of OPEC.  As late as 2004, OPEC maintained a price target range of $22 to $28 per barrel.  Despite sharply higher world demand and continual price pressures since, the cartel has continued to restrict its oil production even as prices surged well over $120 per barrel.  

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The unemployment rate jumped to 5.5% in May, from 5.0% in April, and payroll employment declined for the fifth consecutive month, raising concerns that the economy has slipped into a recession. However, despite a significant drag from continued adjustments in housing markets, growth in the inflation-adjusted (real) gross domestic product (GDP) was 0.9% in the 1st quarter, up from 0.6% in the 4th quarter of 2007. Moreover, private forecasters see positive, though sluggish, growth throughout this year and a return to more trend-like growth of around 3.0% by the end of 2009.

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I appreciate the opportunity to discuss informally some implications of the systemic risks in the financial system as revealed in the current crisis. This statement will simply point out some of the more important and unresolved issues as I see them. The complications are evident. There are no quick and facile answers. Your deliberations can, however, help lay the groundwork for legislation that will, I believe, be necessary, if not now in the midst of crisis and an election campaign, then in 2009.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. -- It is a pleasure to join in welcoming the panel of witnesses before us today. In recent months, a rise in commodity prices worldwide has led to increases in the prices of food in the U.S., as well as in many other nations.

We all are concerned about the impact of food prices on the American family. The global food crisis has led to outbreaks of food riots and potential famine in other countries, which is disturbing as well. The global food crisis has several causes, according to objective analysts.

One factor is higher demand for food from China, India, and other countries undergoing rapid economic development. Another factor is drought or dry conditions in Australia and other grain-exporting nations. An additional factor has been export tariffs on food imposed by several countries. Since many farm commodities are traded globally, the effects of these international factors on U.S. food prices should not be neglected.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Mutual fund shareholders’ taxes on long-term capital gain distributions increased to $16.7 billion in tax year 2007, according to a new study by respected research firm Lipper Inc.  As the Lipper study notes, “Considering most mutual fund investors reinvest their distributions back into the funds, that is a large price to pay for a buy-and-hold strategy!!!”  The study, Taxes in the Mutual Fund Industry—2008, estimates that mutual fund shareholders’ taxable and nontaxable long-term capital gains increased from $233.8 billion in 2006 to $334.0 billion in 2007. 

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WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congress should not react to disappointing labor market figures and other economic data by enacting policies reminiscent of the Hoover Administration, Congressman Jim Saxton, ranking member of the Joint Economic Committee (JEC) said today.  This morning, the Labor Department released data showing no statistically meaningful change in payroll employment in March and an increase of the unemployment rate to 5.1 percent.  Recent weak economic data have led some to compare current economic policies to those of the Hoover Administration, without apparently knowing what the Hoover Administration’s policies actually were.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. - The share of federal income taxes paid by the top 1 percent of households ranked by income increased from 36.5 percent in 2000 to 38.8 percent in 2005, recent Congressional Budget Office (CBO) data show.  Their share of total federal taxes increased from 25.5 percent in 2000 to 27.6 percent in 2005, the last year for which data are available.   

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WASHINGTON, D.C. - A comprehensive measure of median after-tax household income increased to $55,900 in 2005, reflecting a gain of 5.3 percent since 2000 and 26.8 percent since 1980, according to new Congressional Budget Office (CBO) data released today by Congressman Jim Saxton, ranking member of the Joint Economic Committee.  The data extend from 1979 to 2005, the most recent year for which data are available, and are adjusted for inflation.   

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Iraq War obviously has many dimensions including foreign policy, defense policy, and terrorism policy.  While debate about past policies in Iraq will continue, the most important question facing policymakers is: What should U.S. policy in Iraq be now and in the future?  Since the implementation of the surge strategy in Iraq, the military situation has improved dramatically, as noted by a variety of independent experts from the Brookings Institution to the American Enterprise Institute, and publications such as the Washington Post.  A recent Washington Post editorial urged critics of the war to take the success of the surge into account in setting future policy.   

However, another attempt to force a hasty retreat from Iraq is now underway, following the many failures earlier in this Congress.  Now that the surge is proving successful, a quick exit from Iraq would be especially costly.  The virtually immediate withdrawal advocated by some politicians is not militarily feasible, but even a premature withdrawal could produce immense costs.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Recently released Congressional Budget Office (CBO) data show that the total effective federal tax rate of the middle fifth of households declined after 2001 to its lowest levels since at least 1979, Congressman Jim Saxton, ranking member of the Joint Economic Committee, said today.  Under the 2001 and 2003 tax relief legislation, the income tax as a share of income for the middle fifth also has fallen to its lowest levels in decades.

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Since 2000, sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) in emerging countries have become major investors in the United States and other developed countries that are members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).  Since September 2007, SWFs invested at least $62 billion in OECD-country banks and other financial firms, whose capital had been diminished by losses related to the subprime mortgage loan crisis.

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The inflation-adjusted (real) GDP increased at a sluggish 0.6% annualized rate in the 4th quarter of last year. Payroll employment declined in January, the first month with a decline since August 2003. Financial markets remain under stress, which has led to tightening of credit for some businesses and households. With that backdrop, the Federal Reserve cut its target for overnight interest rates by 50 basis points at its scheduled monetary policymaking meeting on January 30, following a more aggressive 75-basis-point inter-meeting cut. Housing market adjustments continue, including reductions in home sales and builder activities along with increased delinquencies and foreclosures on mortgages.

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