Bruce Westerman

ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP

As the only forester in the House of Representatives, I have been dedicated to restoring the health of our national forests. Arkansas is home to some of the most productive forests in the South, and we have to manage them properly. For several years in a row, the House of Representatives passed the Resilient Federal Forests Act, legislation I introduced to address forestry management issues throughout the country. I am proud that several pieces of this large forestry reform package have been signed into law. My policies promote science based management practices to care for our national forests. There are multiple success stories of science based forest management right here in Arkansas and our federal land managers need the freedom to create successes all across our beautiful country. Healthy forests mean both cleaner air and cleaner water...the two very indicators we use to measure environmental stewardship. Taking care of our forests should never be a partisan issue.

While unemployment is down, income is up, and our economy grows, Americans have been strapped with rising healthcare costs that are significantly outpacing inflation. Not only are citizens being burdened with higher healthcare costs, the federal deficit and debt continue to grow with healthcare being the largest driver of those costs. There is a better way and that is why I introduced the Fair Care Act in 2019 and will release an updated version in 2020. The goal of the Fair Care Act is simple; cover more Americans and lower the costs they pay for healthcare both through their private plans and the public health insurance they fund through their tax dollars. This can be done while ensuring that pre-existing conditions are covered. The Fair Care Act focuses on five areas:

Private insurance

Public insurance

Prescription drugs

Provider competition

Innovation

You can find full legislative text of the Fair Care Act and a section by section summary of the Fair Care Act.

Many of the policies contained in the Fair Care Act are bipartisan, and when the United States Congress gets serious about fixing healthcare and making it work for American citizens then I’m confident many, if not all, the ideas contained in the Fair Care Act will become the law of the land.

LOWER TAXES & FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY

The last thing we need to do is take more money from taxpayers to fund Washington, D.C. In order to create jobs and grow prosperity, we must keep taxes lower, so that individuals can invest into their small businesses and families can make ends meet. During my years as a Member of Congress, I was a part of the historic tax cuts that now allow Americans to keep more of their hard earned dollars in their own pockets.