Enzi grills Sec. Geithner on budget proposal's impact on Wyoming

U.S. Senator Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., spent the morning with U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner explaining the importance of lending to small businesses and outlining why the federal government needs to live up to its promise to pay Wyomings Abandoned Mine Land (AML) money back to the state.

Enzi addressed Secretary Geithner in a Senate Finance Committee hearing this morning on the Presidents Fiscal Year 2011 Budget.

Im concerned how small businesses will be impacted by the tax increases in the budget. Im also concerned with the Administrations plan to eliminate tax preferences for oil, gas and coal industries. That will mean a loss of jobs in Wyoming and increase costs to companies which will then trickle down to consumers. That sounds like a hidden tax to me, said Enzi. The AML money is not an appropriation and should not be cut. It is the law to pay Wyoming back the money the state put in. I hope you and the Administration will take another look at that proposal.

Secretary Geithner assured Enzi that he would work with him to understand how the AML program was designed and how the budget proposal will affect the program.

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