Maryland GFOA

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Maryland GFOA

• Legislative Outlook
• January 21, 2005
• Susan Gaffney
• Director, GFOAs Federal Liaison Center
• Sgaffney_at_gfoa.org

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Federal Liaison Center

• Mission
• Inform GFOA members about federal legislation,
  regulations, judicial actions, and policies that
  impact public finance functions
• Represent the interests of GFOA in Washington,
  DC., and enlist grassroots initiatives
• Analyze legislation and regulatory initiatives
  and provide policymakers with information on GFOA
  positions.
• Maintain close relations with Members of Congress
  and the Administration as well as with regulatory
  agencies including the Securities and Exchange
  Commission (SEC), the Internal Revenue Service
  (IRS), and the Municipal Securities Rulemaking
  Board (MSRB).

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Federal Liaison Center

• Disseminating information to our members
• Web Site Federal Government Relations Page
• GFOA Newsletter
• Government Finance Review
• Pension and Benefits Update
• Public Investor

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Federal Liaison Center

• Monitoring Activities and Promoting GFOA
  Positions
• 2005 Priorities
• Telecommunications Reform
• Internet Access Taxes
• Collection of Remote Sales Tax
• Pension, Retirement Savings and Social Security
  Reform
• Tax-Exempt Bond Regulations and Legislation
• Direct Funding to Local and State Governments
  (homeland security)
• Health Care
• Medicaid Reform
• Medicare and Retiree Health Issues

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2004 Highlights

• Leasing Provisions in the JOBS bill
• Eliminates private sector tax incentives for
  sale/leaseback transactions with tax-exempt
  entities
• Places some new restrictions on the depreciation
  models used to lease technology equipment
• Fuel Excise Tax Reimbursement Fleet Credit Cards
  in the JOBS bill
• Congress inadvertently (?) took away the ability
  for credit card companies to apply for and
  receive tax reimbursements for tax-exempt
  customers
• Temporary IRS ruling allowing pre-JOBS bill
  practices to continue
• Upcoming March deadline to temporary ruling.

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2004 Highlights

• E-Rate and E-911 Grants
• Last minute fix to accounting problems that
  interfered with providing 400 million to local
  governments for the e-rate program (Internet to
  libraries and schools)
• Additional funding for E-911 grants

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Projected Federal Spending for Social Security,
Medicare, and Medicaid
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STATS of Interest

• FY 2004 Deficit 521 billion
• FY 2004 Deficit
• 58 Tax Cuts Since 2001
• 29 Defense and Homeland Security
• 9 Entitlements
• 3 Non-Defense/Homeland Security
• (Center for Budget Policy Priorities)
• FY 05 Non-Discretionary/Non-Defense Spending
• 401 Billion out of a 2 Trillion budget

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2005 Initiatives White House

• The Ownership Society
• Social Security Reform
• Changes to the Program
• Reimbursements
• Increase Age Thresholds
• Private Accounts
• Retirement Savings/Pension Reform
• Lifetime Savings Accounts
• Retirement Savings Accounts
• Employee Retirement Savings Accounts
• Combining 401K, 457s, etc., into one type product
• Public Pension concerns

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2005 Initiatives White House

• The Ownership Society
• Tax Reform
• Permanent cuts
• Marriage Penalty
• Child Tax Credit
• Estate Tax
• AMT
• Tax Reform
• Simplification
• Consumption Tax
• Eliminate state and local income, sales and
  property tax deduction
• Eliminate all taxes on savings and investments
• Presidential Tax Force to review and report by
  July 31, 2005.

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2005 Initiatives White House

• FY06 Budget
• Released February 7
• Rumor 5-year freeze on all spending outside of
  homeland security
• Will be a very strict budget
• Changes to Medicaid Program
• 186 billion today
• More flexibility/less money appropriated to
  States (20B cut?)
• Medicare Act Implementation
• Forthcoming Regulations
• Marketing
• Tort Reform
• What are the realities of this ambitious agenda?

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Other 2005 Initiatives Congress

• Transportation Issues
• Six Year Surface Transportation Spending bill
  expired October, 2003.
• No agreement on next bill has been reached.
• Senate 319B
• House 283B
• White House 256B
• Funding Formula Rewrite
• MDs current rate of return 1.04 given to
  state for every 1 of federal gas collected
• Other examples Alaska 6.41 Texas .89
• Amtrak Funding
• Port Safety
• FY06 Budget
• Different Priorities than the Administration?
• Deficit Concerns
• Rx Importation
• Energy Bill

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Other 2005 Initiatives Congress

• Telecom Reform
• Rewrite of the 1996 Telecommunications Act
• Internet access
• VoIP
• Bundling
• Emerging Trends
• Industry
• Federalize the system modeled after the RR
  Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act of 1976
• Prohibited states and localities to apply
  discriminatory property taxes to railroads as
  they were an unreasonable burden and
  discriminate against interstate commerce.
• At US Conference of Mayors event this week
  State and local communications taxes are too
  high.

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Fed FY 05 Examples Impacting State/Local
Governments

• Dramatic Shift in Funding to State Governments
• Medicaid
• Education Funding Unfunded Mandate
• Job Training
• Higher Education
• Transportation Funding

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Fed FY05 Examples Impacting Local Governments

• COPS funding
• From 118 million to 10 million
• Homeland Security Funding
• Decreases/Increases
• Code Change 70 million/week
• Election Reform Funding
• Not getting money to the counties

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Federal Liaison Center

• Monitoring Activities and Promoting GFOA
  Positions
• 2005 Priorities
• Telecommunications Reform
• Internet Access Taxes
• Collection of Remote Sales Tax
• Pension, Retirement Savings and Social Security
  Reform
• Tax-Exempt Bond Regulations and Legislation
• Direct Funding to Local and State Governments
  (homeland security)
• Health Care
• Medicaid Reform
• Medicare and Retiree Health Issues

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Why/How You Should Help Lobby

• Why
• Importance of input from constituents
• Importance of input from government officials
• Importance of real data and anecdotal evidence
• Quality of interaction with Congress
• Quantity of interaction with Congress

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Why/How You Should Help Lobby

• Senator Sarbanes
• Ranking Member, Banking, Housing Urban Affairs
  Committee
• Foreign Relations Committee
• Joint Economic Committee
• Senator Mikulski
• Appropriations Committee
• Health, Education, Labor Pensions Committee
• Select Intelligence Committee

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Why/How You Should Help Lobby

• House Members with Committees of Note
• Ben Cardin Ways Means Homeland Security
• Al Wynn Energy and Commerce
• Steny Hoyer Appropriations Minority Whip
• Elijah Cummings Transportation Infrastructure

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Why/How You Should Help Lobby

• How
• Join the FOCAL Team
• Apply to a GFOA Standing Committee
• Write/Email/Call Members of Congress
• Make contact with Congressional staff in DC and
  at home
• Stay informed!

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Federal Liaison Center

• Staff and Issues of Expertise
• Susan Gaffney taxes, tax-exempt bonds, budget,
  banking, and general outreach
• Barrie Tabin Berger pensions and retirement,
  health care, telecommunications
• Deborah Reaves office operations
• 202-393-8020