This week, millions of people from around the nation came to Washington, D.C. for the inauguration of the first African-American as President of the United States of America, Barack Obama.  It was a historic occasion that is testament to the greatness of this nation and I was honored to attend the event and to assist other Georgians in doing the same.

Our nation is struggling with the second financial failure in a decade and we must address this one thoroughly and comprehensively so that it never happens again.  When Enron and WorldCom failed at the start of this decade, Congress rushed to legislate and regulate without all the facts. We must not repeat that reaction as we seek to recover from today’s financial crisis.  Therefore, on Thursday, Senator Kent Conrad, D-N.D, and I unveiled legislation to create a Financial Markets Commission that will be charged with fully investigating the near collapse of the banking system and the loss of tens of trillions of dollars. 

 

The seven-member, bipartisan Financial Markets Commission will be modeled after the 9-11 Commission, which thoroughly and independently investigated the failures leading up to the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and made sound recommendations on where we needed to improve to prevent another attack in the future.  The commission will include two members appointed by the President, one member appointed by the Speaker of the House, one member appointed by the House Republican Leader, one member appointed by the Senate Democratic Leader, one member appointed by the Senate Republican Leader, and one member appointed by the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

 

The Financial Markets Commission will have one year to investigate all the circumstances that led to this financial crisis, and the panel will have the authority to refer to the U.S. Attorney General and any appropriate state attorneys general for the investigation of any institution or individual who may have violated existing laws. At the end of its investigation, the Commission will report to the President and to the Congress its recommendations for statutory or regulatory changes necessary to protect our country from a repeat of this financial collapse.

On Wednesday, I received my committee assignments for the 111^th Congress and was named to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, which has jurisdiction over issues including communications, highways, aviation, rail, climate change, disasters, space, technology, product safety and insurance.  Due to the fact that transportation is Georgia’s single greatest need, I’m glad to have a seat at the table on the Commerce Committee when critical issues affecting highways, aviation and rail arise. 

 

I am also deeply honored the Republican Leader would ask me to serve as vice chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Ethics.  Ethical wrongdoing by members of Congress should not be tolerated and I promise to bring integrity and fairness to our proceedings.

 

I am also pleased to continue working on issues that are so important to Georgia through the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), Committee on Foreign Relations, Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.   

 

News reports say that President Obama plans to re-impose a ban on offshore drilling and rescind a plan to develop oil shale fields in western United States.  On Thursday, I, along with the other eight Republican members of Georgia’s congressional delegation, called on President Obama to scrap plans to halt exploration of our domestic energy resources.

 

The text of the letter follows:

 

“We write in regards to recent news reports that your Administration is considering ordering a hold on an executive order issued by President Bush to allow offshore drilling in previously banned areas.  These same news reports indicate that the Department of Interior will rescind a plan to develop oil shale fields in the western United States.  We respectfully write to ask that you not reinstate an executive moratorium on offshore energy exploration and production and that you not rescind the Department of Interior plan for oil shale exploration and recovery.

 

Environmentally responsible offshore oil and natural gas exploration and recovery, as well as oil shale exploration and recovery, are essential components of a comprehensive energy policy that will enable the United States to become energy independent. Exploration and recovery of these resources is critical to our national security and economic wellbeing.   We believe allowing for exploration in these areas is also consistent with your priorities of economic growth and environmental protection.” 

 

I continue to push S. 253, the Fix Housing First Homebuyer Tax Credit Act,which I introduced last week to jump-start housing demand and to boost the economy by expanding the homebuyer tax credit passed by Congress last year.  This week, the legislation was endorsed by the National Association of REALTORS as well as by the Association of Equipment Manufacturers, the North American-based international trade group serving off-road equipment and manufacturing industry. 

 

I first began pushing for a homebuyer tax credit early last year with a bill that offered a tax credit for the purchase of those homes that were causing the unprecedented increase in housing inventory: new and foreclosed homes. In April 2008, the Senate passed legislation to stimulate the nation’s declining housing market that included my proposal. However, the final version of the bill that was signed into law included only a $7,500 tax credit for first-time homebuyers that must be repaid.

 

My legislation would expand last year’s tax credit for first-time homebuyers to include all purchasers and would eliminate the current requirement that it be repaid. Repayment of the tax credit would only be required if the home is sold within three years.

 

My legislation would also enhance the existing homebuyer tax credit by extending the eligibility period to December 31, 2009; increasing the credit amount to 10 percent of the home price capped at 3.5 percent of FHA loan limits (geographically dependent) – ranging between approximately $10,000 and $22,000; “monetizing” the credit so it is available at time of closing; and allowing the credit to be used in conjunction with mortgages financed by state or local bonds.

 

In the mid-1970s, America faced a similar housing crisis when a period of easy credit and loose underwriting flooded the market with new construction.  Interest rates rose, the economy slowed and America was left with a three-year supply of vacant homes. Congress responded by passing a $2,000 tax credit for anyone purchasing a new home for their principal residence. The results were clear and swift as home values stabilized, housing inventory dropped and the market recovered.  That’s why I have pushed hard for a non-repayable tax credit for homebuyers; because it will work. 

 

This week, the Senate considered legislation designed to reverse a 2007 Supreme Court decision and effectively eliminate the statute of limitations for employment discrimination cases.  The Supreme Court decided, in a 5-4 decision in the case of Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co., that because she had not filed her claim within 180 days of the first discriminatory paycheck, Lily Ledbetter could not collect almost $4 million in damages awarded by the lower court. 

 

I agree that those who file sex discrimination claims should have a reasonable period to file their claims, but this legislation goes much further than that. The bill would effectively repeal statutes of limitations for filing all sex discrimination cases, allowing alleged victims to wait years and years to file a claim. It is in everyone’s interest – the victim, the company, the courts – to resolve these cases as quickly as possible, not allow them to fester for years.

 

While I voted against the legislation, it passed in the Senate last evening by a vote of 61 to 36.

 

Next week the Senate will vote on the nomination of Timothy Geithner to be Treasury Secretary, and may consider other Cabinet nominees. Also, the Senate is expected to debate whether to reauthorize and expand the State Children’s Health Improvement Program, also known as SCHIP. 

    

Sincerely,

Johnny Isakson