Fair taxes, more jobs, cheaper energy

Creating more and better jobs is central to building better lives for working families; but our current tax laws and business environment discourage businesses from starting and expanding here in Philadelphia -- the key to creating jobs that Philadelphians deserve.

Some politicians believe raising the minimum wage increases working families' incomes. Yet, the minimum wage can't help families if jobs don't exist in the first place. When politicians create a hostile economic environment for businesses, jobs disappear -- a lesson Philadelphians have learned the hard way. Rather than making it more expensive for businesses to hire and train workers, the Lang economic development plan would expand the Earned Income Tax Credit, which has been shown to produce greater benefits for working families than increasing the minimum wage

The Lang plan also holds the line on business taxes, which are passed on to consumers and repel businesses from the city. The best way to improve the lives of working families is to let them keep more of the dollars they earn.

Finally, rising energy costs create a drag on all families and businesses. America must produce more energy, while learning to consume less. Congress must remove unnecessary barriers to expanding domestic production of oil and natural gas. Congress must also encourage development of alternative energy sources such as nuclear power, clean coal, solar and wind.