American Gas - March 2012 - (Page 15)

y o u r a s s o c i at i o n at w o r k ask aga Time to Take the Deficit Down U.S. debt currently exceeds $15.2 trillion, representing a ticking time bomb for America’s citizens, businesses and future. n Nov. 21, 2011, the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, known familiarly as the congressional Super Committee, announced that it had been unable to reach a bipartisan agreement on reducing the federal deficit. The Super Committee’s failure dashed the hopes of the business community and millions of ordinary Americans that Congress would finally be forced to take action to address the nation’s growing and ultimately unsustainable level of debt. But in the current dysfunctional political environment, and with a presidential election less than a year away, the Super Committee’s collapse was not really surprising. And AGA’s leadership is stressing that it cannot become an excuse for halting—or even appreciably slowing—bipartisan efforts to stem the deficit tide. The facts speak for themselves: The U.S. debt currently exceeds $15.2 trillion, or $48,700 per citizen. Under the current trajectory, we will add another $7.2 trillion in the next 10 years. The Congressional Budget Office projects that debt will rise from 69 percent of gross domestic product today to 75 percent by 2020 and 84 percent by 2035—or even faster under some scenarios. Without entitlement reform, projections are that Medicare will run out of funds in 2029 for hospital costs, skilled nursing facilities, and home health and hospice care, and in 2040 Social Security will be unable to pay full benefits. O Plenty of Plans The Super Committee was only the most recent entity to assume a deficit-reduction mandate. Here’s a brief history of its predecessors: President Obama’s Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, known as BowlesSimpson after its co-chairs, former Clinton White House Chief of Staff Erskine Bowles and former Sen. Alan Simpson, R-Wyo., developed a plan to cut nearly $4 trillion from projected deficits through 2020. Besides making deep cuts in military and domestic spending, the proposal called for eliminating or cutting tax breaks for individuals and businesses, including the deductibility of mortgage interest payments, while also slashing income tax rates; gradually raising the federal gasoline tax by 15 cents a gallon; cutting projected Social Security benefits to most retirees in later decades; and raising the retirement age for full Social Security benefits to 69 from 67 by 2075. In a vote in December 2010, the proposal was supported by 11 members of the 18-member committee, three short of the number needed for a formal endorsement. Obama largely distanced himself from the plan. Simpson and Bowles testified before the Super Committee, urging it to “go big” and aim for the $4 trillion in savings. s. LawrEncE PauLson is a contributing editor to American Gas. march 2012 AmericAn GAs 15

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Gas - March 2012

American Gas - March 2012
Contents
President’s Message
In the News
Safety First
Ask AGA
Leaders on Leadership
A Better Balance
Places to Be
Vendor News
Noteworthies
Jobline
Marketplace
Advertisers’ Index
Facts on Gas

American Gas - March 2012