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MILLER BILL TO AWARD CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL TO FIRST SPECIAL SERVICE FORCE PASSES HOUSE

Tue, 21 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT

The House of Representatives today passed H.R. 324, sponsored by Congressman Jeff Miller (R-FL-1), that grants the Congressional Gold Medal to members of the First Special Service Force.

“Today, I join my colleagues in support of a bill that bestows upon the First Special Service Force the Congressional Gold Medal, Congress’ highest expression of National appreciation for distinguished achievements and contribution, for their superior service during World War Two,” Miller said on the floor of the House.

Nicknamed the Devil's Brigade by their foes, the First Special Service Force was a joint American-Canadian commando unit trained at Fort Harrison near Helena, Montana during World War Two. Many modern American and Canadian Special Forces units trace their heritage to this unit. The First Special Service Force achieved remarkable success in battle, and contributed prominently in the liberation of Italy and France.

The volunteers for the 1800-man force consisted primarily of enlisted men recruited by advertising at Army posts, stating that preference was to be given to men previously employed as lumberjacks, forest rangers, hunters, and game wardens. Force members received rigorous and intensive training in stealth tactics, hand-to-hand combat, the use of explosives, parachuting, amphibious warfare, mountain warfare, and cold weather warfare.

The First Special Service Force was activated on July 9, 1942 as a force of three small regiments and a service battalion. Following its initial training period in Montana, the First Special Service Force went on to serve in campaigns in the Italy and Southern France. Once sent into action, the First Special Service Force never failed a combat mission.

“With just six days remaining until Memorial Day, I cannot think of a more appropriate way to honor the heroism and sacrifice of the warriors of the First Special Service Force,” Miller added. “To all of the men and women who have guarded our great Nation in the name of protecting and defending the liberties we hold dear, thank you.”

Miller Message

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 04:00:00 GMT

In the News

Last Monday, a series of bombs exploded during the Boston Marathon taking the lives of three people, including an eight-year old child, and leaving over one hundred injured. The attack occurred on Patriot’s Day, when the citizens of Massachusetts commemorate the battles of Lexington and Concord, which were the first of the Revolutionary War.

These senseless acts of violence have left an indelible mark on the city of Boston and have caused immense fear, sorrow, and disbelief across the country. Vicki and I pray for God’s blessings on the victims and their families whose lives have forever been changed. Our nation will remain united in prayer and support for the people of Boston.

Photo Courtesy of NorthEscambia.com

Constituent Voice

Every week, I receive thousands of letters and phone calls from constituents all across the Florida’s First Congressional District. Without the input of hardworking Northwest Floridians, it would be nearly impossible for me to do my job. One topic that seems to be on the minds of many constituents is the Administration's continued attacks on our religious liberties.

I recently discovered that some U.S. Army Reserve training material list Catholics, evangelical Christians, Sunni Muslims, and some Jews in a “religious extremism” category along with groups like Al Qaeda, Hamas, and the Ku Klux Klan. Like most Americans, I find these attacks on religion astonishing and extremely offensive. Actions like this continue to demonstrate a troubling anti-religion bias within the Administration. Rest assured, I have joined with my colleagues in the House of Representatives in calling on Secretary of the Army John McHugh to rescind this training material immediately.

Veterans Corner

My work as Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs would not be possible without the input of Veterans Service Organizations (VSO). VSOs work tirelessly on behalf of our Nation's veterans, and it is important to listen to what they have to say. Last week, I hosted a roundtable event to bring representatives from nearly 30 VSOs together with congressional leaders for an off-the-record discussion regarding perennial veterans-related challenges such as VA’s benefits claims backlog and mental health care access. Our roundtable was a successful opportunity to have a candid discussion about what we can do to improve the lives of veterans, and I look forward to strengthening the partnership between Congress and the many VSOs as we work to ensure our veterans receive the care and benefits they have earned.

Congressman Jeff Miller at VSO Roundtable

Washington Update

Cyber Security
Information technology is a crucial component of our daily personal and economic lives. Yet, each year our nation receives numerous cyber attacks that seek to steal vital information from American citizens and businesses. But, cyber attacks do not just threaten our national security, they also have an enormous negative impact on jobs and our economy.

These cyber attacks include Chinese and Russian-based intrusions into corporate business networks for the purpose of industrial espionage, as well as attacks from rogue hackers or attempts at state-sponsored intrusion from countries like Iran aimed at disrupting key internet functions or harming vital infrastructure. Each year, upwards of $300 billion worth of intellectual property is stolen from American businesses by cyber security intrusions emanating from abroad.

To help combat these serious threats to our national and economic security, the House passed cyber security legislation last week to curb costly cyber attacks on American intellectual property and to protect our national security.

On Tuesday, the House passed H.R. 756, the Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2013, by a vote of 402-16. This bill would help coordinate our response to cybersecurity threats to our nation by creating a strategic cybersecurity research and development plan that addresses cybersecurity risks across the Federal government. The risk of cyber attacks, however, extends beyond the Federal government, and H.R. 756 also seeks to address attacks to the private sector by establishing a university-industry taskforce to deliver recommendations on how the private sector and educational institutions can best collaborate to protect vital information.

The House also passed H.R. 624, the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act. H.R. 624 seeks to establish voluntary information-sharing links between the private sector and the government. Rather than seeking to intrude on the private sector by mandating the sharing of information, this bill encourages companies to share cyber threat information by limiting the government’s use of the information and protecting the companies from liability.

While combating cyber attacks is vital to our nation’s interest, we must also ensure that our constitutional liberties are protected. During debate on H.R. 624, I was glad to support an amendment offered to improve the bill by clarifying that the federal government may not make use of any records with personal identifiable information—such as firearms sales records, tax return records, and medical records—shared under the legislation. I was also glad to see amendments offered to clarify that nothing in the bill authorizes the Department of Defense, National Security Agency or other Intelligence Community element to target an American citizen for surveillance, and that nothing in the bill authorizes companies receiving cyber threat information to sell the personal information of a consumer for marketing purposes.

Gun Control
In the Senate, a vote was held last Wednesday on their proposal to expand background checks on gun sales. This misguided proposal, which I was glad to see fail, would have actually penalized many law abiding citizens by criminalizing the private transfers of certain firearms. Expanding background checks by requiring friends or even family members to receive the federal government's permission to exercise their Second Amendment rights would do little if anything to reduce violence.

In the District

Pensacola Ice Flyers
Last Sunday, the Pensacola Ice Flyers defeated the Huntsville Havoc to claim the Southern Professional Hockey League’s President’s Cup Championship. I would like to congratulate the team for the win and for bringing the Cup home to Northwest Florida. The crowd of nearly 4,700 fans that packed the Pensacola Bay Center that night is also a testament to the strong support and appreciation the Ice Flyers have in this community. Thank you all for your hard work and dedication and for making Northwest Florida proud.

Photo Courtesy of Pensacola Bay Center

Doolittle Raiders
Seventy-one years ago on April 18, 1942, eighty brave men, now called the Doolittle Raiders, began the long journey to finish the fight that we as Americans did not ask for when Pearl Harbor was attacked in December 1941. This weekend, in Fort Walton Beach, I was honored to help celebrate this extraordinary group of American heroes.

Some might not realize how important the area around Eglin Air Force Base was to the success of their endeavor. The Raider’s mission, thought by many to be near impossible, required innovations and extensive training to include secret preparations conducted in March 1942 right here at Eglin Field. These intensive preparations included training for accomplishing short takeoffs and landings and techniques for fuel efficient flying.

The Doolittle Tokyo Raiders mission success, requiring unbelievable acts of heroism and extraordinary airmanship while facing unimaginable odds, is recognized as a turning point in the war in the Pacific. Their skill, valor, and selflessness boosted the morale of our nation’s military while causing the enemies offensive to pause. This morale boost helped fuel the growing American offensive, ultimately leading to the United States victory in the Pacific.

It was my distinct honor to pass on the sentiments of countless Americans of our enduring gratitude for the Doolittle Raider’s service and sacrifice to our great nation. Thank you Mr. Richard E. Cole, Mr. Robert L. Hite, Mr.Edward J. Saylor and Mr. David J.Thatcher and God bless the Doolittle Raiders and all of our brave men and women who have and continue to defend the freedoms we enjoy today.

Doolittle Raiders Lt. Col. Edward J. Saylor, SSgt David Thatcher, and
Lt. Col. Richard E. Cole (L - R)
Photo Courtesy of the Norwest Florida Daily News

Congressman Jeff Miller, Maj. Gen. Kenneth D. Merchant, and
Doolittle Raider Lt. Col. Edward J. Saylor (L-R)

As always, I welcome your comments. To share your thoughts on legislation, votes or issues, please visit http://jeffmiller.house.gov/ to send an e-mail or call any of my offices.

Thanks,

Jeff

MILLER ANNOUNCES 2013 CONGRESSIONAL ART COMPETITION WINNERS

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 04:00:00 GMT

U.S. Rep. Jeff Miller (R-FL-01) today announced the winners of the annual Congressional Art Competition, “An Artistic Discovery.” The award ceremony was held Thursday, April 11, 2013 in Pensacola at the Pensacola Museum of Art.

Art enthusiasts were invited to come by to view the works of Northwest Florida art students. The Best of Show was “Self Portrait of “Innocence”” by Abby Harrison of Jay High School. The First Runner Up was “Granny” by Isabella Jenkins of Niceville High School. The Second Runner Up was “Lion’s Teeth” by Audrey Stevens of Rocky Bayou Christian School. The Third Runner Up was “Alter-Ego by Robin Elizabeth Berntsen of Niceville High School. “Rage” by Jessica Taylor of West Florida High School and “Fearfully and Wonderfully Made” by Amanda Hart of Rocky Bayou Christian School received Honorable Mention. This year’s panel of judges was comprised of Jane Halonen, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences for the University of West Florida, John Markowitz, Program Director for the Department of Art for the University of West Florida, Andy Marlette, Pensacola News Journal and syndicated editorial cartoonist, Gary McCracken, former Photo Editor for the Pensacola News Journal and the current official photographer for the Pensacola Blue Wahoos, and Chip Spirson, international award winning artist. Krist Lein, Visual Arts Department Head for Pensacola State College, served as both judge and as the Master of Ceremonies for the event.

The Best of Show, Miss Abby Harrison, will be flown to Washington, D. C. to attend the National Congressional Art Competition to be held in June. She is also eligible for a scholarship to the Savannah College of Art and Design.

Congressman Jeff Miller was the 2008 National Co-Chair for the Congressional Arts Competition. The event, which was initiated by House members in 1982, is a nationwide annual art competition that allows high school students, from all fifty states, the District of Columbia, and U. S. territories to showcase their artistic ability. The winning work from each Congressional district is displayed in an eleven month exhibit in the Cannon tunnel that leads into the U. S. Capitol.

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Miller Message - 4/2/13

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 04:00:00 GMT

Constituent Voice

Every week, I receive thousands of letters and phone calls from constituents all across the Florida’s First Congressional District. Without the input of hardworking Northwest Floridians, it would be nearly impossible for me to do my job. I would like to highlight one of the issues that I have been hearing about from my constituents in the last week.

Perhaps the best way to begin this new section is with an issue that continues to weigh on the minds of thousands of people in Northwest Florida and millions across the country: Obamacare. This month we passed the three year anniversary of the President’s massive government overhaul of our health care industry. Yet, more than three years later, I continue to receive hundreds of letters, emails and phone calls each and every week on this issue, almost every single one of them calling for this law to be repealed and defunded.

In the House, I have voted more than 30 times to repeal, defund, or dismantle the law, most recently on March 21 when I voted in support of the fiscal year 2014 House Republican Budget. In addition to these votes, I recently signed on as a cosponsor of H.R. 1005, the Defund Obamacare Act introduced by Congressman Tom Graves (R-GA). This simple one page bill would prohibit any taxpayer dollars from being used to implement or fund any portion of Obamacare. I believe it is a commonsense solution to help ensure that the American people are not forced to spend trillions of dollars on Obamacare.

Veterans Corner

In December 2010, I was honored to be elected to serve as Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. Coming from Northwest Florida, which has one of the largest populations of veterans anywhere in our country, I knew that this was a crucial opportunity to help serve and ensure that our nation’s veterans receive the recognition and benefits for their unparalleled service to our nation.

Since being elected as Chairman, I have had the opportunity to hear from veterans and veterans’ service organizations from across the country on many important challenges facing the veteran community. One of these recurring issues is the completely unacceptable VA claims backlog. VA owes it to America’s veterans to formulate a realistic plan to eliminate the backlogs and work with Congress to tell us what they need to achieve this vital goal.

On March 20, the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs held a hearing to try and open up the honest conversation that must occur so that VA and Congress can work together to fix the backlog problem. Unfortunately, VA has a history of sugar-coating the problems it faces and overstating its ability to solve those problems. And the backlog issue is a particularly challenging problem that is getting better, not worse. In fact, according to a March study released by the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office, the average days to complete a claim have increased from 161 days in fiscal year 2009, to 260 days in fiscal year 2012. As a result, nearly 900,000 veterans are waiting for VA to make a decision on their claim.

The scope of VA’s problem is further highlighted by the GAO report, which compares the national average for the different phases of the claims process with VA’s stated national target. The VA currently spends nearly twice as much time gathering evidence and nearly five times as long making a rating decision as they should.

I was glad to see VA Secretary Eric Shinseki announce on CNN’s State of the Union on March 24, that VA is installing electronic records systems to speed up the process and reach their stated goal of eliminating the backlog by 2015; however, Congress must maintain rigorous oversight of the department to ensure that poorly performing employees and management are held accountable. It’s time to end that culture of complacency that has developed among some VA employees and replace it with a culture of accountability throughout every corner of the organization. If a VA employee doesn’t want to do their job, the answer isn’t to move them to another VA office. The answer is to remove them from VA altogether and replace them with someone willing and able to fully and properly serve our nation’s heroes.

In The News

Last week the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case of United States v. Windsor. In this case the Supreme Court will decide whether the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is constitutional. DOMA—which was passed by an overwhelming bipartisan majority of 342-67 in the House and 85-14 in the Senate—defines marriage as an institution between one man and one woman. Marriage has been one of the institutional bedrocks of human society for thousands of years, and I am strong supporter of the Defense of Marriage Act.

Unfortunately, despite the fact that DOMA is the law of the land, the Obama Administration refused to defend the law in court. In fact, his Administration went so far as to send not one, but two Justice Department officials to argue before the Supreme Court that DOMA is unconstitutional.

House Republicans understand that millions of Americans support the traditional definition of marriage and want to see DOMA defended and upheld. Because the Administration refused to defend this law, House Republicans have used the House’s Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group (BLAG) to appoint attorneys to defend DOMA in court.

The Supreme Court is expected to rule on this important issue in June, and I am hopeful that they will uphold DOMA and affirm its constitutionality.

In the District

Last week, I was delighted to be in Northwest Florida during the Constituent Work Week. I was pleased to meet with state officials and local farmers in Jay to receive updates on the Farm Service Agency plans in Northwest Florida.

Fiscal responsibility starts with a sound budget

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 04:00:00 GMT

All across our nation, American families are taking a look at the money they have and budgeting to meet their expenses. They understand that it isn’t always easy to budget, but it is necessary. Yet, for too long big government advocates in Washington have insisted that our federal government does not need to live within its own budget, and years of government expansion and overreach have added trillions of dollars of debt and left our economy weaker.

In fact, our total national debt recently eclipsed the size of our entire economy, and, without action to reverse this trend and restore fiscal responsibility to Washington, our debt is a serious threat to the future prosperity of our nation. Our federal government was created by the people and for the people, and it has a moral responsibility to carry out its constitutional duties without bankrupting the American people.

Since taking control of the U.S. House of Representatives in 2010, conservatives have acted on numerous occasions to reduce spending, eliminate waste, and put us on a path to a balanced budget. We have released and passed our budgets in the House each and every year, while the Senate has failed to pass a budget in over four years, and the President has failed to deliver his budget on time four times in five years in office. Their constant failure to meet their budgetary obligations is a clear indication to the American people that the current Administration and the Senate leadership are not serious about solving our fiscal challenges.

Fiscal responsibility starts with a budget. Last week the House Budget Committee, led by Budget Chairman Paul Ryan, released the House Republican budget for fiscal year 2014. The House Republican budget cuts $4.6 trillion in wasteful government spending and balances our budget in 10 years, while also fixing our broken tax code to help our nation’s businesses invest and hire new workers, repealing Obamacare, and making commonsense reforms to our entitlement programs to strengthen these programs for current and future beneficiaries and ensure that the promises of retirement security made to the American people are not broken due to Washington’s fiscal irresponsibility.

Simply put, Washington can’t keep spending money it doesn’t have. Balancing the budget is a commonsense solution to our fiscal challenges that would also strengthen our economy spurring private investment and increasing productivity. Our budget cuts responsibly, while protecting key priorities like national security. It eliminates waste through anti-fraud accounts and returns federal spending to its historical levels.

Reducing spending and balancing our budget would not only save future generations from a massive debt burden, it would also provide sustained economic growth for years to come. According to analysis from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, $4 trillion in spending cuts over the next ten years would result in an additional increase of 1.7 percent of our gross national product in 2023. In a time where our economy has been struggling to grow at all, this increase would mean more jobs and higher wages for American workers, while also putting us on a path to solve our debt issues once and for all.

Our budget also includes a much needed overhaul of our tax code. American families and businesses must navigate a labyrinth of confusing credits, deductions, and phase-outs, and this complexity means that they are forced to spend more than $160 billion and 6 billion hours every year simply trying to comply with the tax code. The House budget would set the way for further work being done by the Ways and Means Committee to simplify the tax code by consolidating the seven individual brackets into two with a first bracket of 10 percent and a top bracket of 25 percent, reducing the corporate tax rate from one of the highest rates in the world to a commonsense system that allows American businesses to be competitive in the global economy, and reducing the amount of time and money that Americans spend just trying to file their taxes.

We know that tax reform will spur further economic growth and prosperity. In 1981, President Reagan came into office amid a stagnant economy with a mystifying tax code that included 16 brackets and a top rate of an astounding 70 percent. President Reagan made bipartisan tax reform a foundation of his economic policy. He reduced the number of brackets down to three and the top rate down to 28 percent, and our nation saw an unprecedented economic boom that lasted through the 1990s.

House Republicans also understand that we must act to reform our entitlement programs. Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid have trillions of dollars in unfunded liabilities, and without reforms Americans will face a sharp cut in benefits that will put not only the solvency of our government at risk and our economic future, but also severely jeopardize the ability of the government to protect the promise of retirement security for current and future beneficiaries.

Health care costs in our country are growing, and currently average seniors receive $3.66 of Medicare coverage for every $1 that they contributed during their working life. But, this imbalance can be solved without reducing the quality of care to either current or future beneficiaries. Our budget does just that by preserving the current Medicare system for those in or near retirement, ending the raid on the Medicare trust fund, introducing means-testing for high-income seniors, repealing the health-care rationing board established in Obamacare, and making commonsense reforms for future generations that allow consumers, not the federal government, to drive innovation and competition in the free market. By offering multiple guaranteed coverage options for future seniors, including the traditional Medicare option, our reforms would drive health care providers to compete against each other to offer higher quality care at lower prices.

The Senate also released a budget of their own last week; however, their budget offers no real solution to our debt crisis and includes yet another $975 billion in tax increases and only $975 billion in deficit reduction. But, even the $975 billion in supposed deficit reduction, which is far below what our nation and economy requires, includes “savings” from winding down the war in Afghanistan and it also counts “savings” from emergency spending, like Hurricane Sandy relief, that are set to expire anyway. Our House budget does not use these flawed baseline gimmicks, which automatically assumes that we will spend money that everyone knows is set to expire. But, if you counted the House plan using the Senate’s method then our budget would include $5.7 trillion in cuts. And, on top of the tax increases and budget gimmicks, the Senate budget even includes $100 billion in new stimulus spending. The disparity between the savings in the House and Senate budgets, and the willingness of the Senate to use gimmicks to tout savings where none exist, is simply further evidence that Senate Democrats are more interested in raising taxes yet again than averting a debt crisis or ensuring the long-term solvency of our entitlement programs.

Our nation is facing many serious fiscal challenges that must be addressed to preserve the future prosperity of our nation and the solvency of our entitlement programs. The House Republican budget is a commonsense plan to put our nation back on a prosperous path through responsible spending cuts, an overhaul of our tax code, and entitlement reform that will preserve the hard earned retirement security of current seniors and ensure that future generations of Americans do not inherit a massive debt burden and a diminished economic future, while the Senate Democrat budget is simply more of the same big government tax and spend policies. Our budget is recognition of the obligation that Washington has to fulfill its constitutional duties in a responsible manner that extends opportunities for all Americans to use their God-given freedoms and liberties to pursue the American Dream.

Sequestration and the Denial of the Spending Problem in Washington

Sun, 24 Feb 2013 05:00:00 GMT

By now, most Americans are all too familiar with the automatic spending cuts, known as sequestration, that are poised to indiscriminately cut billions of dollars from defense and non-defense spending. There is no question that our nation has a spending problem that we must address; however, as several of my colleagues and I have been saying for more than a year and a half now, we can and should replace these harmful automatic cuts with commonsense spending cuts that don’t harm our military, its civilian support structure, or our national security. As I noted in my previous newsletters, the House has passed multiple bills to avert sequestration and avoid the negative consequences resulting from the sequester. In fact, the House first passed legislation 290 days ago to replace sequestration with responsible spending cuts. But these efforts have been ignored by the Administration and Senate leadership who has yet to bring a potential solution to the Senate floor for debate.

With sequestration set to hit our military the hardest, you would think that President Obama, as Commander-in-Chief, would be the first one at the table to negotiate an alternative plan, especially when you consider that he insisted on the devastating, across-the-board spending cuts becoming law in the first place. But, rather than sit down with Members of Congress to solve this problem, President Obama is far more interested in holding campaign-style events. He spent last week touring the country to speak with local TV stations, calling a handpicked group of White House correspondents in for “off the record” talks, and announcing plans for a visit and stump speech at a Virginia shipbuilding facility, all while doing little to build a bridge toward a solution.

During his media tour last week, President Obama told a SiriusXM radio host, “I will be honest with you right now, it is not clear to me that the Republicans are going to agree to turn this sequester off despite the fact that 75 percent of the American people agree with me in terms of the approach and disagree with them.” Now, I don’t know where President Obama is getting these numbers from, but they are wildly out of line with what I hear every day from folks in Northwest Florida.

The President’s rhetoric is also far out of line with Americans all across this nation on the state of our budget and economy. Based on a bipartisan February poll, 73 percent of people believe our government should cut spending. Meanwhile, a nationwide poll conducted by the University of Connecticut, carried out in January, found that 40 percent of respondents believe we should reduce our deficit through spending cuts, while only 3 percent believe we should do so through tax increases. Yet, the President’s plan to avert sequestration, which he only announced this month, calls to replace the spending cuts found in sequestration with more spending and tax increases. And yet the President would like us to believe that 75 percent of Americans agree with his plan to raise taxes even further?

Numerous military and Department of Defense officials have reiterated on multiple occasions, sequestration cuts would cause the most harm to our Armed Forces, and the President’s own Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta has said, these cuts would “hollow out” our military. Just last week, General Odierno, Chief of Staff of the United States Army, testified, “If nothing is done to mitigate sequestration, the Army will be forced to make dramatic cuts…putting our national security at risk.”

At the end of the day, President Obama has a constitutional duty, as Commander-in-Chief to ensure the readiness of our Armed Forces. Instead of threatening to harm our military if he doesn’t get a second tax hike, the President must stop the campaign-style rallies and bring the Senate to the table to join the House and find a solution to sequestration that does not imperil our nation’s security or force additional tax increases on hardworking Americans.

President's sequester should be replaced with responsible reforms to help balance our budget.

Tue, 12 Feb 2013 05:00:00 GMT

In less than three weeks, across-the-board spending cuts known as sequestration are set to go into effect. But these cuts are not a new development. We have known since November 2011 that the country was threatened by these cuts. While House Republicans have worked to replace the arbitrary cuts in sequestration with commonsense spending reductions in other areas, the President and Senate Democrats have ignored the issue completely for more than one year.

Until late last year, the President continued to claim sequestration would "not happen." Even today, the President continues to claim sequestration was the idea of Congress, despite the fact that it was the President's current chief of staff Jack Lew and White House Legislative Affairs Director Rob Nabors who pitched the idea of sequestration to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on behalf of the President.

Last week, after nearly fifteen months of delaying, the President finally unveiled his "plan" to avert the looming budget sequester set to go into effect on March 1. While it is good news the President has finally realized the seriousness of sequestration, his blueprint to avoid sequestration would seek to avert the automatic spending cuts with $500 billion in new taxes. We cannot solve our spending problem by taxing hard working Americans more, and, once again, the President has failed to comprehend this important point.

Meanwhile, Senate Democrats have failed to even offer a plan. Just last week, the Chairwoman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Barbara Mikulski, called the Senate's sequestration plan "a work in progress," and Senate Budget Committee Chairman, Senator Kent Conrad, told reporters he was unsure of who would lead the Senate effort and that the American people would have to "wait and see what is introduced."

The lack of urgency from the Administration and Senate Democrats is astounding, considering the potential impact of sequestration on our economy and national security. According to the Congressional Budget Office, sequestration is estimated to reduce economic growth by 0.7 percent this year, and the Bipartisan Policy Center predicts it will cost our economy one million jobs.

Of course, the impact of sequestration will have a significant impact on communities with a large military presence, like Northwest Florida. Sequestration will levy $492 billion in defense spending cuts over the next ten years, on top of the $487 billion in cuts that are already being implemented. They would result in job losses of approximately 350,000 from active duty and Department of Defense civilian work forces, and they would also have an impact on other activities, such as the potential cancellation of some of the Blue Angels flight demonstrations.

The Administration's sequestration threatens to reduce our military's readiness and throw our nation into another recession. House Republicans fully understand the seriousness of both sequestration and our larger fiscal problems and we have acted to address these issues. In contrast to the Administration and Senate Democrats, we have passed multiple measures to replace the scheduled sequestration cuts with commonsense measures that would not threaten our national security or economic prosperity.

In May 2012, the House passed the Sequester Replacement Reconciliation Act of 2012. This bill would have replaced sequestration with measured cuts in other areas of our budget. For example, our sequester replacement bill would have saved billions by requiring Social Security numbers to claim the refundable child tax credit, making sure that individuals who aren't eligible to receive assistance from safety-net programs like food stamps do not receive these benefits, eliminated automatic funding set to be given to states to set up exchanges from Obamacare, and eliminated the bailout fund so that unelected bureaucrats cannot use tax payer funds to bail out the creditors of "too big to fail" institutions.

Just last week, Republicans unveiled legislation, which I also strongly support, known as the Down Payment to Protect National Security Act of 2013 to avert sequestration. This commonsense bill would replace the first year of sequestration by shrinking the Federal civilian workforce ten percent through normal attrition. If acted upon by the Senate Democrats and enacted by the President, this legislation would remove this year's devastating effects of sequestration while the Congress works to achieve a permanent solution.

House Republicans do not want sequestration to go into effect, but we understand that we must rein in government spending now before it spirals even further out of control. The American people know that spending is the problem and that we cannot solve a spending problem by simply raising taxes. We should replace the President's sequester with responsible reforms to help balance our budget within the next ten years, and House Republicans stand ready to work across the aisle to avert sequestration. In order to get this country back on the right track, we can no longer afford to do the things we would like to do, only the things we have to do. It is time for the President and Senate Democrats to put aside their insistence on more tax increases and join us to institute the responsible fiscal policies that our nation and the American people require.

MILLER ANNOUNCES UPDATED CONTACT INFORMATION

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 05:00:00 GMT

U.S. Rep. Jeff Miller (R-FL-01) today announced the updated contact information for his Washington D.C. office. The information for the District Offices remains unchanged.

Washington D.C. Office

336 Cannon House Office Building

Washington, D.C. 20515

Phone (202) 225-4136

Fax (202) 225-3414

Web/email: www.house.gov/jeffmiller

Toll Free Number

1-866-367-1614

Pensacola Office

4300 Bayou Blvd., Suite 13

Pensacola, Fl 32503

Phone (850) 479-1183

Fax (850) 479-9394

Ft. Walton Beach Office

348 S.W. Miracle Strip Parkway, Suite 24
Fort Walton Beach, Florida 32548

Phone (850) 664-1266

Miller Statement on Newtown, Connecticut Tragedy

Sat, 15 Dec 2012 05:00:00 GMT

Friday, an unspeakable tragedy hit the small, all-American community of Newtown, Connecticut. We were reminded that evil knows no boundaries and left Americans all across our country in shock, disbelief, fear, anger, and sorrow. Friday was also a day that heroes were born and a nation reunited. We may never know the answer to the question “why”, but what we do know is through God’s grace and our strength as a nation, we cannot, nor will we bow down to evil. Let us remember the scripture in Romans 12:21—“Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.” May God’s blessings be shed on the students, parents, families, faculty, and staff of Sandy Hook Elementary whose lives have forever been changed, and let us all remain united in prayer and grow stronger in faith and love."

MILLER TO REMAIN CHAIRMAN OF HOUSE VETERANS’ AFFAIRS COMMITTEE

Sun, 18 Nov 2012 05:00:00 GMT

House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH-08) announced today that Congressman Jeff Miller (R-FL-01) will remain the Chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee for the 113th Congress.

“It is certainly a great honor to be able to serve as Chairman of an important committee that is so critical to our country,” said Miller. “I’m eager to continue to work hard in this capacity on behalf of our veterans and retirees.”

The Committee on Veterans’ Affairs is responsible for authorization and oversight of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) VA is the second largest department in the federal government with over 300,000 employees and a budget of over $120 billion.

Since being elected to Congress in 2001, Miller has established himself nationally as a strong advocate for veterans' concerns including his successful support for changes to concurrent pay receipt and his advocacy of a greater co-sharing between the military and veterans' facilities. As Chairman, Miller has worked tirelessly to streamline the delivery of health care for veterans, improve oversight of VA, and provide opportunities for unemployed veterans.

A staunch fiscal conservative, Miller aims to bring efficiency and accountability to the Department of Veterans Affairs. Miller plans for a return to strict oversight, focusing on issues such as claims backlog as well as safety and security breaches within the department.

“I continue to be humbled by the opportunity to serve the more than 22 million veterans who have so proudly served this great nation,” Miller said. “I will continue to work to ensure that we meet our veterans’ needs.”