A. JUDY ADDRESSES THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SECURITIES DEALERS (NASD)
FORUM IN NAPERVILLE. (9/15/03)
�Let�s face it, the best investor protection is investor education. Congress cannot mandate perfect information nor legislate smart investors, but we can help investors to educate themselves. And education cannot start early enough.
I do not want to be alarmist, but the state of financial literacy among our children is not good. Here are the statistics:
Sixty percent of preteens do not know the difference between cash, credit cards, and checks.
Twenty-eight percent of 12-year-olds do not know that credit cards are a form of borrowing.
And almost 40 percent of them do not know that banks charge interest on loans.
That�s why I introduced H.R. 2990, CENTS Act � as in �dollars and cents�. CENTS stands for the Commission to Educate our Nation�s Teachers and Students on Financial Literacy Skills Act. It will establish a commission that to provide recommendations on how to integrate high quality, standards-based economic and financial education into K-12 learning. The commission will identify the best practices in the teaching of economics and personal finance, and it will recommend how to better coordinate federal, state and private sector efforts.
Sounds like a �no-brainer� right? Well, I�m hopeful we can move the bill before adjournment this year.�
B. CONGRESSIONAL ACTIVITY
Last Week in Congress
H.R. 49 Internet Tax Moratorium: The bill permanently extends the moratorium on three types of internet taxes: (1) taxes on Internet access; (2) double-taxation (for example, by two or more states) of a product or service bought over the Internet; and (3) discriminatory taxes that treat Internet purchases differently from other types of sales. The bill was agreed to by a voice vote; Biggert vote: yea. Action is pending in the Senate.
H.R. 7 Charitable Giving Act of 2003: The legislation provides $12.7 billion in tax breaks and incentives to encourage charitable giving. This bill will allow taxpayers who do not itemize their deductions to write off some donations to charity. HR 7 will gradually increase the cap on corporate donations from 11 percent to 20 percent of taxable income over the next 8 years. It will also prohibit foundations from counting administrative expenses toward charitable contributions unless they are directly related to delivering services, managing grants or complying with federal, state and local laws. The bill was passed in the House by a vote of 408-13; Biggert vote: yea.
Action is pending in the Senate Conference Report on H.R. 13, The Museum and Library Services Act of 2003 The Bill authorizes $250 million for library programs and $41.5 million for museums in fiscal 2004, and unspecified amounts for fiscal 2005 to 2009. The bill also increases the minimum amount that a state can receive for library services to $680,000, up from $340,000 this year. In
addition, libraries must coordinate certain activities within the guidelines of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. The bill passed by voice vote; Biggert vote: yea. The bill goes to the
President for his signature.
This Week in Congress
Selected Votes Scheduled:
Water Resources Development Act of 2003 � This bill provides for the conservation and development of water and related resources, and authorizes the Secretary of the Army to construct various projects for improving the rivers and harbors of the United States.
Continuing Resolution for Fiscal Year 2004 � This bill extends federal funds to allow the government to continue operations without the final passage of the appropriation funds for the fiscal year 2004, which begins on October 1st, 2003.
The house may also vote on the conference reports for 2004 appropriations bills from the conferees on defense, legislative branch, and Homeland Security.
