Roskam Calls for Growing Solution to U.S. Economy

America’s debt is not a problem that can be eliminated simply by cutting government spending. Instead it will require the removal of barriers to allow business to flourish, U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam told attendees at a joint chamber of commerce meeting Tuesday morning.

“We have to grow ourselves out of this mess,” Roskam said.

Roskam, regarded as one of the most pro-business legislators in Illinois, was the keynote speaker at a chamber breakfast in Itasca that included members of 14 chambers from across Cook and DuPage counties, including the Elmhurst and Wheaton chambers. A Wheaton Republican, Roskam told the crowd of nearly 200 that trade agreements, regulatory reform and tax reform will become life-giving to a stagnant economy.

But, despite a Republican majority in the House of Representatives, passing legislation supporting those kinds of initiatives is difficult due to the Senate and unelected bureaucrats in the executive branch, he said. Those bureaucrats are using the regulatory powers of the federal government to hamper an already sluggish economy by creating “heavy handed regulations,” he said. Over the past year regulations have grown at a rate Roskam called "alarming."

While Congress is on break, Roskam has met with business leaders in the 6th District, which includes a large portion of DuPage County, to discuss economic matters and federal regulations. Roskam said what he’s learned is troubling. Leaders from several businesses, including Sara Lee in Downers Grove and Federal Signal Corporation in Oak Brook, told him new regulations have slowed business and dramatically increased costs for compliance. For example, Roskam said new guidelines set by the Food and Drug Administration prohibit the marketing of some foods in areas where there are large crowds of children under the age of 18. He said this will seriously prohibit a company like Sara Lee, which makes Ballpark hot dogs, from sponsoring the Detroit Tigers.

According to the Small Business Administration, federal regulations have a cost to employers of $1.75 trillion.

Roskam said regulatory standards can be good, but the regulators must look at the value of regulating control.

The United States currently has debt of $14.6 trillion.

Roskam said taking on debt is not always a bad thing, but borrowers have to be careful about the reasons for accumulating debt. He said economists say it’s OK to take on debt if the investment has the potential to appreciate in value, such as for purchasing a house. But, Roskam said those same economists will say it’s not a good idea to take on debt to purchase an automobile because it depreciates by 20 percent as soon as it’s driven off the lot. Debt, as a share of the economy, will be 900 percent of Gross Domestic Product by 2080 if it’s not gotten under control.

“There were some people in Congress who understood that, which is why you heard so much about the debt ceiling,” said Roskam, the Chief Deputy Whip of the House. In early August, Roskam backed a plan that raised the debt ceiling while cutting government spending. He said the bill could have been better, but given the political reality of Washington, it was the best they could pass. He said the bill “fundamentally changed the direction of spending in Washington—something he said is seriously needed. When looking at the total $3.5 trillion in spending for 2010, Roskam said two-thirds of the budget is spent on mandatory allocations, such as Medicare and Social Security. But, he said that cannot continue because  every day 10,000 people become eligible for those programs.

“We don’t have the money to sustain that and pay for the other things government does,” Roskam said.

But, if voters urge reform to the tax codes, Roskam said the road to growth will be easier.

Caroline Harris, counsel for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, touted several measures that will benefit U.S. businesses, including lowering corporate tax rates, creating permanency in the tax codes so businesses can predict their taxes over a number of years and simplification of the tax code.

“If we do these things, we can see businesses spend more time on growth than figuring out their taxes,” Harris said.