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Come and Read It Report

December 11, 2017
Newsletters

Dear Friends,

Every day we are getting closer to achieving a pro-family, pro-growth and pro-American tax reform plan. In order to do so, last week, House Republican Leadership announced we will stay in Washington until at least December 22 to ensure we get this done. We promised the American people a tax break by 2018, and that is exactly what we're going to do.

Tax Reform

The House is continuing to work with the Senate to get more jobs, fairer taxes, and bigger paychecks for every one in this country. We have been conferencing the bill for over a week to reconcile the House and Senate versions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. I am confident that we will see the outline for the bill by the end of the week so we can continue pushing forward to get this bill to the President's desk by Christmas.

The Strengthening Oversight of Iran's Access to Finance Act

About a month ago, I introduced H.R. 4324, the Strengthening Oversight of Iran's Access to Finance Act, which passed out of the House Committee on Financial Services. Two weeks ago, Senator Cruz and Senator Perdue introduced it on the Senate side.

Tomorrow, my bill is expected to come before the House Committee on Rules, where it will then move to the House floor for debate. If all goes according to plan, this bill will be voted on and passed in the House by Wednesday evening. This legislation is a huge win for America by promoting increased safety between the U.S. and Iran, and I encourage the Senate to pass this bill in a timely manner.

Recognizing TX-25 Small Businesses

If you missed my letter last week, I am asking all small businesses located in our district to share their stories with me. To recognize our small business owners, I'd like to post their photos and memories on my official website and Facebook throughout the month of December. If you own a small business, or know someone who does, please submit your stories and photos here or by emailing TexasCD25@mail.house.gov. You can also click here for more information.

TX-25 Updates

Last week, it was announced that Golden State Foods Corporation would be opening a new manufacturing and distribution facility for its Liquid Provisions Division in Burleson, Texas. A year ago I notified Governor Greg Abbott of this project and my enthusiastic support for the immense contribution it would make to the 25th District of Texas, as well as the entire state. I spoke to VP John Maguire to officially welcome him to our home state – it's a great day for Burleson and a great day for the State of Texas. People and corporations choose to come to Texas from all over the world for our small-town conservative values, and it's no wonder that Golden State Foods wants these standards implemented into their business. I am excited to watch this business flourish in our unique Texas economy.

Second Amendment Update

On Wednesday, the House voted to protect Second Amendment rights in this country by passing H.R. 38, the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, that I am a cosponsor of. I am, and will forever be, a champion for the Second Amendment. American citizen's constitutional rights are not contingent upon invisible borders, and this bill protects the rights of those who follow the law, and exercise their right to self-protect.

This bill also strengthens and streamlines background checks by including the Fix the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) Act. In addition to addressing and fixing issues in the current law, it also incentivizes states and federal agencies to upload records to NICS, and penalizes agencies that fail to report relevant criminal records. While it is important that we do not punish law-abiding citizens, it is also important that we take necessary measures to ensure firearms do not get into the hands of criminals.

Legislative Update

Last week: In addition to voting on 18 legislative items, I co-sponsored H. Res. 637, H.R. 2166, H.R. 4537, and H.R. 3861.

The Financial Services Committee held a subcommittee hearing that I participated in last week. If you missed it, you can find it here. We also passed a committee bill out of the House, H.R. 477, with a vote of 426-0.

This week: as I stated earlier, my bill, H.R. 4324, the Strengthening Oversight of Iran's Access to Finance Act, will head to the Rules Committee and then to the House Floor, where it will then await a Senate vote.

The Committee will hold a mark-up this week where we will consider and vote on 15 pieces of legislation. You can watch the mark up starting tomorrow, at 9am CT, here.

It is an honor and privilege to represent the people of Texas' 25th Congressional District and as always, please reach out to me with any issues and concerns that are important to you.

In God we trust,

Image removed.

Roger Williams

Member of Congress

Issues:EconomyMilitary