Columns

On the Ways and Means Committee, I have the opportunity to work directly on growing our economy, creating jobs, and reforming our tax code. I am eager to continue this work, especially as we take on tax reform this fall. At the start of this Congress, I was selected for an additional committee assignment on the Committee on House Administration (CHA), where I can help improve the operations and accountability of the House of Representatives.

We must uphold our commitment to the men and women who serve in our Armed Forces. Since the start of this Congress, the House has passed two dozen bills to better serve our veterans.

Talks began in Washington, D.C., on August 16 among trade officials from the United States, Canada, and Mexico on modernizing the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). This has caused understandable concern for producers, but if the U.S. maintains the right priorities in these negotiations, the agriculture industry can benefit from an updated agreement.

Social Security is a large portion of many Americans’ retirement incomes, and Congress is working on a number of solutions to strengthen the program and increase efficiency for beneficiaries.

Three decades after President Reagan signed the largest tax reform in our country’s history into law, our tax code is once again desperately in need of a pro-growth overhaul. The good news is tax reform is at the forefront of our agenda, and a framework is in place.

For too long, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has strayed from its intended purpose and instead has become a red tape factory with little to no accountability. Thankfully, the Trump administration is working to reverse this harmful trend.

Agriculture is the lifeblood of Nebraska’s economy. The industry faces many challenges, from low commodity prices to damaging fires and drought, which reinforce the need to ensure we are doing all we can in Congress to provide certainty in agriculture policy.

Our agriculture producers fuel our economy and feed the world, and it is our job to make sure markets are open to them. As a member of the Ways and Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over trade policy, I will keep emphasizing the importance of asserting U.S. leadership in the global marketplace.