Highlights from the House: March 2011

Dear Friends

As you well know, gas prices are on the rise in Vermont and throughout the country. The steep rise in recent weeks is driven in part by turmoil in the Middle East and in part by oil speculators taking advantage of the crisis to make a profit.

Vermont families and small business owners, struggling to make ends meet, are reeling from this spike in gas and fuel oil prices which threatens to derail an already fragile economic recovery.

I am working in Congress on legislation that will provide short-term relief for Vermonters, go after oil speculators, and create a long-term strategy to move the United States towards energy independence so we are no longer vulnerable to events beyond our control.

I hope you'll read more about my efforts below.

Sincerely,

Congressman Peter Welch

P.S. As always, for more information about any of these issues, be sure to visit my web site by clicking here, my YouTube channel by clicking here and my Facebook page by clicking here.

Welch works to calm rising gas prices

  With gas prices rising, Rep. Welch is working to ease the burden of high gas prices on small businesses and working families. On February 24th, he wrote to President Obama asking him to tap the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve, a move that, when deployed in the past, lowered gas prices significantly. While the President has indicated that he is actively considering the request, Welch has also introduced legislation in the House that would immediately release oil from the reserves.

With oil speculators looking to make a profit on market instability and, as a result, driving gas prices even higher, Welch is writing legislation to take away special tax benefits to oil speculators. At a Montpelier press conference on March 14th, Welch announced legislation that would close a tax loophole that encourages speculation and distorts the supply-demand balance of the market.


Read the letter sent to President Obama 

Watch Welch talk about how to tame rising gas prices on Fox News 

Read about the legislation to crackdown on speculation

Welch fights to preserve key debit card reforms

  In July, Rep. Welch helped enact legislation to crack down on out-of-control credit card swipe fees that are charged to merchants every time a customer uses a debit card. He did so after hearing from Vermont small business owners about how these fees were the highest in the world and hurting their businesses.

In early March, with the aggressive backing of credit card companies and big banks, legislation was introduced in Congress to delay this important reform. Calling "delay" just a polite way to say "derail," Welch is fighting to preserve these key consumer protections.

Read about the bipartisan effort to preserve debit card swipe fee reforms

Read about Welch's efforts in the Bennington Banner Welch introduces legislation to prevent corruption in Afghanistan

On March 7th, Rep. Welch introduced legislation that would prevent the Afghan government from taxing American companies that administer aid to Afghanistan. Welch's legislation comes in response to reports that the Afghan government recently sent overdue tax bills to US contractors working in the country. The government has threatened arrest or confiscation of goods if US companies refuse to pay. Welch's legislation would bar future assistance to Afghanistan unless US contractors and subcontractors are exempt from taxation by the government of Afghanistan.

Read the Washington Post article detailing the corruption in Afghanistan

Read more about Welch's legislation

Welch works to address nation's budget problems

Welch works to address nation's budget problems As Congress struggles to agree on a spending bill to fund the government for the remainder of the fiscal year, Rep. Welch is challenging his colleagues to debate cuts in all federal programs, including defense, tax loopholes, and tax cuts for profitable oil companies. The current debate is over non-defense domestic discretionary programs which make up only about 12 percent of the federal budget. Targeting only 12 percent of the budget, Welch argues, will not only fail to balance the budget but will destroy vital institutions that are important to Vermont and the nation as a whole.



Watch Welch defend important institutions on the House floor