Press Releases

Today, Senator Mike Lee will offer a motion to keep 2012 spending levels on certain appropriations at 2011 levels. Submitted as a motion to recommit on the “minibus” spending bill – which funds areas in agriculture, transportation, and commerce, among others – Senator Lee’s motion would save tax payers $10 billion next year.

In a recent letter to Department of Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, several members of Congress wrote in protest of the Secretary's proposed a one million acre withdrawal of mining rights. The members stated the withdrawal has nothing to do with protecting the Grand Canyon environment but is actually ‘de facto wilderness’ for a region that conservationists previously agreed would remain accessible to the mining industry. The Interior Department’s own environmental study on the proposed withdrawal found ‘no conclusive evidence’ that modern-day mining operations in this area are harming the Grand Canyon watershed.

Today, Senator Mike Lee submitted legislation that would create millions of new jobs and inject $1 trillion into the American economy by significantly reducing the excessive tax on repatriated assets. Sen. Lee’s proposal would permanently lower the tax rate for businesses from 35% to 5% on money earned overseas and brought back to this country.

As a strong supporter of free markets, competition, and innovation, I was disappointed by the testimony of Google chairman Eric Schmidt. I had hoped to hear the company acknowledge the responsibilities that accompany its preeminent position in the Internet search market and address concerns many have raised about Google’s possible anti-competitive activities. Unfortunately, I fear that some of the testimony in today’s hearing may only encourage those who are calling for legal enforcement or government regulation. I am hopeful that we can avoid those outcomes, and encourage Google to take appropriate voluntary action to resolve these concerns.