[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 13] [House] [Page 18688] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]TAX CUT FOR 98 PERCENT OF TAXPAYERS (Mr. TONKO asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.) Mr. TONKO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today for fairness, for equality, and to simply stand up for what is right. I support a tax cut for our Nation's working families and middle income community. In my district, that includes 98 percent of taxpayers, over 342,000 individuals. What I do not support, and what our Nation simply cannot afford, is a tax cut for millionaires and billionaires. In fact, Republicans are holding hostage the extension of unemployment benefits at the expense of tax cuts. Six thousand eight hundred individuals in my district make over $250,000 a year. Conversely, 6,400 individuals in my district will lose their unemployment benefits at the end of this month. The choice--6,800 billionaires and millionaires, or 6,400 hardworking families that will not be able to pay their bills, put food on their table, or heat their homes on a cold winter's night. I stand with the middle income and working families of my district. And what happens to the local economy? If we do not extend unemployment benefits, my district alone could see the loss of tens of millions of dollars in economic benefits, including small business losses each and every month. Mr. Speaker, the moral and economic choice is clear. I stand with our working families and our middle income community. ____________________