Cong.-elect French Hill Says Think Narrowly, Not Comprehensively, To Pass Reforms

Cong.-elect French Hill doesn’t think there’s much chance for comprehensive tax reform in the upcoming Congress, but he believes smaller changes can occur.

Speaking to community leaders at the Benton Area Chamber of Commerce Tuesday, Hill said, “I believe that there’s a lot of possibility if you go narrow and don’t go comprehensive. … Somebody said, ‘I want to ban the word ‘comprehensive’ from the lexicon up there in Congress.’ Because, you know, it’s just hard to get consensus around these enormous pieces of legislation. They’re too big. They’re too complex. They’re not read. They’re not well understood. They’re being drafted by people who don’t have a lot of experience, frankly, in the area. And so by going narrow, I think you can tackle some things.”

Possible reforms would include loosening credit for home buyers. Hill, a banker by trade, said the restrictions created by the Dodd-Frank Act have made it too hard to borrow money.

Such a bill would pass through the House Financial Services Committee, of which Hill has been named a member. The committee is considered important enough that members of it are not supposed to serve on any other committee.

“Mortgage credit has been curtailed by the Dodd-Frank Act,” he said. “And I think it’s curtailed for Democratic home applicants and Republican home applicants across the country, and I think citizens are talking about that, and I think bankers, whether they’re in Illinois and supporting President Obama, or whether they’re down in Texas and support Rick Perry, they are both being affected by this.”

As part of a wide-ranging discussion about economic development issues, Hill said he supports the federal government block-granting more workforce-related programs than it currently does. That would give states and communities more flexibility to meet their needs.

After a year of campaigning for the office, Hill, who traveled to the Chamber in “Old Blue,” the old car featured in his campaign commercials, said he has had little time to take a breather. His days involve interviewing staff, closing out his business interests, and preparing for the holidays.

His Little Rock office will be in the same building as his two immediate predecessors’ were – the Prospect Building at University and Cantrell. “It’s a hectic time,” he said.