Ms. Ayotte mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from new hampshire. Ms. Ayotte mr. President , i ask that the quorum call be vacated. The presiding officer without objection. Ms. Ayotte thank you, mr. President. Mr. President , i come to the floor today to talk about an amendment that i will seek to offer on the pending bill, amendment number 2603. We all sympathize with those who are struggling to find work in a difficult economy, and i want to see people get back to work. Certainly a shortterm extension for those who are relying on Unemployment Insurance, if its paid for, will allow a transition for those who are out of work to do what we need to do most in this chamber, and to give them an opportunity to get a goodpaying job. The focus in this chamber most of all needs to be on enacting progrowth policies that will encourage both small and Large Businesses to thrive and grow in our economy and to create jobs. I have voted today to begin debate on the legislation to provide a temporary extension of Unemployment Insurance. And i voted to begin this debate because i believe that both sides of the aisle can find a way to grant this temporary extension to those who are struggling to find work in this difficult economy while making sure that we dont add to the 17 trillion of debt that also threatens our country and our economy. And i continue to believe that any temporary extension in longterm Unemployment Benefits should be paid for in a responsible manner. So i have introduced an amendment, ayotte amendment 2603. I think its an amendment that makes a ton of sense and let me tell you what this amendment does. This amendment pays for the threemonth extension of Unemployment Insurance, it fixes the unfair cut to military cost of living that was just enacted in the budget that i voted against because i felt that this was unfair to those who have served in our military and were singled out for cuts to their Retirement Benefits, unlike anyone else, including, by the way, those who were retired because they had a medical retirement. In other words, those that many of us, i know that the president has visited walter reed as have i, those who have lost arms, legs, they receive a medical retirement, and their cost of living was cut under this budget as well. So my ameny would pay for this temporary Unemployment Insurance for those who are struggling to find work, to give them a transition, to get them back to work, but it would also pay for it to fix and reverse this unfair cut in military Retirement Benefits to their costofliving increase, those who, by the way, have served, many have served multiple tours for our country and have sacrificed a tremendous amount because they moved around, because they have served both, many of them in iraq and afghanistan on behalf of our country. And it would also, in addition to that, give 7 billion to reducing our deficit. And the way i pay for this is to close, to fix an egregious problem in our tax code. Its a problem that was identified by the treasury i. G. It is, frankly, egregious. This is a problem in our tax code that has allowed Illegal Immigrants, has allowed people who are claiming a tax credit, a refundable tax credit for children who shouldnt be entitled to it. Many of these children dont even live in the United States of america or may not even exist. Why . Because when this refundable tax credit, someone claims it, they dont have to put a Social Security number for the child. This is based on a treasury i. G. Report that identified this problem. And this amendment, this simple fix that would require a Social Security number with anyone who is claiming the additional Child Tax Credit on their tax return is estimated to save 20 billion over the next ten years. So paying for fixing the retirement cuts of the costofliving increase that went to those who have sacrificed so much for our country, paying for a temporary Unemployment Insurance extension for those who are trying to find work, reducing our deficit by 7 billion over ten years, all three of those things done by fixing an egregious problem in our tax code. The audit of the treasury i. G. In 2011 reported that individuals who are not authorized to work in the United States of america receive 4. 2 billion by claiming this additional Child Tax Credit. The audit found that the payment of federal funds through this tax benefit appears to provide an additional incentive for aliens to reside in the United States without authorization, which contradicts federal law and policy to remove such incentives. The audit was based upon an analysis of tax returns filed by persons with individual taxpayer identification numbers which are issued to individuals who are required to have a taxpayer i. D. Number for tax purposes but are not eligible for a Social Security number because they are not authorized to work in the United States of america. Again, this saves 20 billion over the next ten years. And let me just tell you how egregious this is. Heres some of the reports about this problem in our tax code. Its fraud. This is fraud that were going to fix. This is Good Government. We should fix this now regardless. This 20 billion is money that should not be going out the door over ten years. Heres some examples from indiana. In fact, i just saw walk in the chamber one of my colleagues from indiana, senator coats. An indiana local television station found that an undocumented worker who was interviewed at his home in Southern Indiana by a reporter admitted his address was used this year to file tax returns by four other undocumented workers who dont even live there. Those four workers claimed 20 children that live in one residence, and as a result the i. R. S. Sent the Illegal Immigrants tax refunds totaling over 29,000. The local station has found that many undocumented workers are claiming tax credits for children who live in mexico. Many children that dont even live in this country are claiming tax credits. Theyre being used by those committing fraud on the i. R. S. To claim for tax credits even though they dont even live in the United States of america. An indiana tax prepareer who acted as a whistleblower to an indiana news station said weve seen sometimes 10 or 12 dependents, most times nieces or nephews, on these tax forms. The more you put on there the more you get back. The whistleblower had thousands of examples. Another example from the whistleblower we got over a 10,000 refund for nine nieces and nephews he said. Pointing would the words niece and nephew listed on the tax form nine times. Were getting an 11,000 refund on this tax return. Theres seven nieces and nephews, he said, pointing to another set of documents. I can bring out stacks and stacks. Its just so easy, its ridiculous. In North Carolina investigators uncovered more than 1,000 tax returns linked to eight addresses in North Carolina last may with refunds worth more than 5 million. Investigators tied at least 17 tax returns totaling more than 62,000 in refunds to a charlotte, North Carolina apartment one woman leased. At another apartment nearby investigators discovered 153 returns valued at over 700,000 in returns, claiming fraudulently this tax credit because they did not have to list a Social Security number. Another address in the same apartment complex had 236 returns worth 1. 1 million in refunds. At another charlotte apartment complex, investigators traced 398 returns to two apartments totaling more than 1. 9 million in additional Child Tax Credits with no guarantee that the children even existed or lived in the United States of america. Another North Carolina woman owned a tax preparation business. A search of that business in her home turned up more returns, dozens of uncashed u. S. Treasury checks, a fedex box containing dozens of foreign birth certificates and a notary public stamp and signature stamp listing her as a notary. That fraud case by the i. R. S. Totaled over 5 million in fraud. In tennessee, a search warrant prepared by the i. R. S. Claims that a phur murfreesboro worker encouraged workers to lie on their children who live in mexico as their depends. The i. R. S. Said the tax preparer filed 600 tax returns over the last three years and although his clients only paid 3. 3 million in taxes, they were able to claim more than 17 million in return, and because of this tax credit and the fact that they did not have to put Social Security numbers for the children that they were claiming a refund for. The refunds left the United States on the hook for 14 million. So heres the question in this chamber. The question is should we affix egregious fraud in our tax code where we have people that arent entitled to work in the country are claiming tax refunds for children, some of which have not been determined to exist, some of which dont even live in our country . Should we fix that in our tax code . Isnt that Good Government . And if we fix it, we can use the pay for, the 20 billion that the joint Tax Committee has estimated to save over the next ten years to do the following. To help for three months give a temporary extension to those americans who are struggling for work right now. To fix the unfair cut to our military retirees, including those who have gotten a medical retirement, those who have, are Wounded Warriors who have been injured, many of them serving in afghanistan and iraq. And return 7 billion to the treasury. So heres the choice. Only in washington would this be the choice. We can fix the egregious problem with the tax code where theres all kinds of fraud and save billions of dollars. We can fix it for those who have sacrificed the most, the unfair cuts to their costofliving increase, those who have served our country admirably and our Wounded Warriors and return money to the deficit. Or what . We can be denied a vote. I hope that i will get a vote on this. Its pretty outrageous if im not granted a vote on this tax fraud that needs to be fixed on behalf of the taxpayers in this country. And that if i cant get a vote to take that 20 billion and to help struggling workers and to fix the unfair cuts to those who have sacrificed the most and taken the bullets for this country and also help fix our deficit, only in washington would that be a tough choice for anyone. How do you vote against doing that . I really hope, mr. President , that the majority leader will allow a vote on this commonsense amendment that will allow us to help struggling workers without adding to the 17 trillion in debt, will allow us to say to our men and women who have sacrificed the most that we arent going to continue to target you with these unfair cuts to your cost of living when no one else has sacrificed under this budget agreement like that, and particularly our Wounded Warriors. And to say to the American Public were going to fix fraud in our tax code and also take some money and apply it to the deficit. Mr. President , it makes so much sense that only in washington would i even be asking the question on the senate floor, will i get a vote on this commonsense amendment that allows us to do important things for the nation and fix this egregious fraud in our tax code, putting taxpayer dollars to uses that they should be put to. I thank you, mr. President , and with the hope that ill get a vote on this commonsense amendment and that my colleagues will support this. Thank you, mr. President. A senator mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from indiana. Mr. Coats mr. President , id like to discuss todays vote as others have come down here. First of all, its important to understand that this was a vote to start debate, or whether to start debate. And i was one of those who joined several of my colleagues saying, yes, this ought to be debated. It was not a vote to pass or not pass the legislation. That will come. But the frustration that so many of us have had over this past year in particular of not being able to participate in the process of legislating boiled over at the end of the year. Ended with a change in the rules in the way the senate has operated for more than 200 years. And stuffed the desires of the minority to be able to participate in certain areas regarding nominations. Now theres some talk about doing the same for legislation. That frustration has led to many of us to try to rethink how can we get back to whats called regular order, the way the senate has always operated in the past, the way it operated when i came here in my First Tranche in the senate. I started in the house of representatives back in 1980. I was part of a minority for four straight terms. There, majority rules. And if youre in the minority, you dont have a whole lot of authority. Maybe at that time we held the white house under ronald reagan, and he had the ability to go above a congress which did not support him but went to the American People, and through their efforts many changed their minds in the Majority Party and supported the policies of president reagan. When i came to the senate in 1989, i was asked, whats the difference between the house and the senate . Youre in the minority in the senate. You were in the minority in the house. I said, the ditches i difference going from legislative heaven, from a place lot lower than that in the house, because any senator majority or minority had the opportunity to offer an amendment, to offer an alternative, to offer a substitute, to participate in the effort to pass better legislation. Any senator had that, and anybody in the minority had that, and the majority leader then senator george mitchell, the democrat leader honored that, and it was honored thiewt throughout my time in the United States senate. I was then gone for several years and came back. I thought i came back to that same process, toll fin only to , no, the whole process has been changed. You dont have the rights that you once had. You dont have the opportunities you had. I came here to represent the people of indiana and their wishes and yet now im in a position where i dont even have an opportunity to offer an amendment, an alternative or a substitute say, look, this mabe ma this may be a legitimate issue. I cant support what is being handed to us, take it or leave it. It deserves debate, it deserves alternatives, it deserves to give us an opportunity to try to convince our colleagues that a majority of us can Work Together to pass legislation. And thats the kind of legislation that works as opposed to some of the legislation that were dealing with now that has been enacted simply by oneparty rule. I think looking back on the Affordable Care act the socalled obamacare act those who supported it wish now that it did have bipartisan support, that it was worked out, that some of the alternatives that were presented by republicans were debated and perhaps supported. Maybe wed be in a different position now. So its not right to characterize a vote on a procedural motion to say, lets go afford and open this up for debate. The opportunity to have amendments. And thats why i voted for it. Unemployment insurance is a legitimate issue policy issue to debate. I cant support the proposal that was brought before us, but i can support going afford to discuss that proposal, to look at the alternatives, to offer my own amendments, and to see if our thoughts, our ideas prevail. And im hoping thats what will happen. Now, thats up to the majority leader, senator reid. 2013 did not offer us very many in fact, very few opportunities to do that. We needed up on a really sour note in 2013. It was good we had that break, and were back here this is the second day of the new session of congress. I hope that members both sides of the aisle reflected over this period of time on how we can return the senate to its original intent, how we can get back to socalled regular order, so that we could have legitimate debate on the floor. We could go back and forth with our colleagues. I think if we amend this, it would be a better bill. You dont think that bill really is the one that ought to address this problem, but heres a substitute. Lets debate it and then lets have a vote. And some of us will win, some of us will lose. But every one of us will have the opportunity to have their voice heard, their amendment voted on, their alternative evaluated, and perhaps work in a bipartisan way to come up with something constructive. And so that was the purpose for leaving most of my party and voting for the motion to proceed, to go forward. And here we are. Now we have a chance to debate it. Senator ayotte was on the floor speaking before me, senator po portman, suggestin suggesting wn debate this. We havent come to grips with the deficit. The future consequences for our economy, children, grandchildren, future generations is something were all going to be ashamed of if we dont try to impose some discipline. How do we do that . We start well, we tried many efforts going all the way back to simpsonbowles and all the major effort efforts and were uo get the president s support for any of those, even though he commissioned the simpsonbowles group, which is bipartisan. We have not been able to tbet that larg been able to get tt large effort in place that will put us on the path to fiscal health. When we have new p