WASHINGTON, D.C. (KELO AM) South Dakota U.S. Senator Mike Rounds on Thursday shared his latest on replacing Obamacare and comprehensive tax reform, two of the biggest and most difficult issues facing Congress.
Rounds said the Congressional Budget Office was inaccurate on the potential impact of the Obamacare Replacement bill approved by the House of Representatives. This is far from the first time, Rounds and other Senate Republicans have said the CBO was wrong.
Rounds was asked that if the CBO is wrong so often, why even continue to fund it in this age of budget deficits?
"Really good question," answered Rounds with a chuckle, "this is a professional organization. It's just that sometimes we ask them to make estimates that are difficult to prove."
Senator Rounds also talked about the tax cut bill he introduced this week. He called it a "down payment" on more comprehensive tax reforms that will take much longer to approve.
"I think we might have more success in kind of an incremental approach. I'd love to see a comprehensive plan, but I'm not sure that that is going to happen with all the different interests."
Rounds legislation would cut tax brackets across the board by 2 percent, but not require changes in any other area of the tax code. He said it would save the average South Dakota family about $800 a year.