Formatting necessary for an accurate reading of this text may be shown by tags (e.g., <DELETED> or <BOLD>) or may be missing from this TXT display. For complete and accurate display of this text, see the PDF.
[Page S4830]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TREATIES
Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, speaking of economic growth and
development, the Senate will soon turn our attention to a number of
bilateral tax treaties with important U.S. trading partners. We have
these kinds of agreements in place to reduce tax evasion, tax
avoidance, and unfair double taxation of U.S. citizens and businesses
who conduct businesses overseas. The four we will consider this week
are agreements with Spain, Switzerland, Japan, and Luxembourg.
The U.S. Government and each of these foreign governments have
painstakingly negotiated updates to existing agreements about how
certain kinds of commerce would be taxed and which country will tax
them. In short, Senate ratification of these protocols would mean less
confusion, more certainty, and, often, fewer taxes for U.S. job
creators--and, by the way, a simpler rule book for overseas investors
who want to invest their money here. Fairer treatment for our own
American job creators and more enticement for foreign investment to
head to our country--that is what we would call a win-win.
We are talking about a serious economic impact. In addition to the
four countries we are tackling this week, there are three more nations
with tax treaties pending which I know the administration is continuing
to work on with the Foreign Relations and Finance Committees to
finalize work on these remaining agreements.
Combined, these seven foreign countries invest more than $1.2
trillion in the United States. That is more than $1 trillion in foreign
investment and, by some estimates, hundreds of thousands of U.S. jobs
are tied up, either directly or indirectly, in trade with these
countries.
These trading relationships touch all 50 States. Every one of my
colleagues is familiar with communities that benefit from the foreign
investment. For my part, that includes thousands of workers in
Kentucky.
One major manufacturer with ties to Spain employs 1,500 people in my
State. It accounts for more than one third of all the stainless steel
produced in the United States every year. Over the three decades it has
operated in Carroll County, the surrounding communities benefited from
more than $60 million in tax revenue.
That is just one of many job creators in my home State, and it is far
from the only one with a serious interest in seeing these measures get
across the finish line. From consumer goods makers to industrial
suppliers, Kentucky continues to welcome job-creating investment from
around the world.
I think practically every American is familiar with Hot Pockets, a
culinary staple of busy families, workers, and college students
everywhere. But not everyone knows that, as of several years ago, every
single Hot Pocket is cooked in Mount Sterling, KY. The facility employs
more than 1,000 Kentuckians. The parent company is Nestle, based in
Switzerland. So there are not only hard-working Kentuckians but also a
lot of hungry consumers across the country who can understand why we
need to keep our international trade in sync.
Passing these agreements will help every State to keep up the
economic momentum. It will reinforce the international trade that is so
essential to our economic success and help stave off further trade
disruptions. I urge all of our colleagues to join me in voting for
these this week.
____________________