With more than 16% of Americans either unemployed, underemployed, or too discouraged to look for work, the U.S. Chamber on July 14 released an Open Letter to the president, Congress, and the American people outlining specific recommendations for creating more than 20 million jobs in the United States over the next 10 years.

U.S. Chamber Chairman Thomas D. Bell Jr. says that economic uncertainty created by government policies discourages job creation.
Photo: Ian Wagreich

“Through their legislative and regulatory proposals—some passed, some pending, and others simply talked about—the congressional majority and the administration have injected tremendous uncertainty into economic decision making and business planning,” the letter states. It goes on to list five policy recommendations for creating jobs:

• Create a growth and jobs tax policy by immediately extending, at least temporarily, all of the tax relief passed in the previous decade and reducing the U.S. corporate tax rate.
• Restore fiscal health by restraining and modernizing entitlement programs and by generating additional royalties and user fees through the development of natural resources, including oil, gas, and timber.
• Expand trade and export-driven jobs by, among other things, enacting pending free trade agreements with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea.
• Rebuild and expand America’s infrastructure by removing the regulatory, legal, and financial roadblocks to private investment.
• Ease the regulatory burden, which is making businesses reluctant to invest and create jobs.

“We call upon policymakers of all parties and philosophies to end the finger-pointing and work constructively with the job creators to reduce uncertainty, restore confidence, and restart the recovery,” the Chamber letter reads. “It’s time for some different approaches to unlock frozen capital and jolt our economy back to life.”

The letter was released at the Chamber’s Jobs for America: Summit 2010. The event was covered by several national media outlets, and the audience of some 500 included members of Congress, business and industry leaders, and representatives from associations and local chambers of commerce.
Read more about the Chamber’s jobs agenda at www.FreeEnterprise.com/jobs.