WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) issued the following statement today following a report from the U.S. Department of Labor that the unemployment rate stands at 9.1 percent and there was no net job creation in the month of August:
“This report is the latest in a string of disappointing economic news, and it underscores how vital it is for Washington to take meaningful steps to spur job growth. The national unemployment picture is amplified in my state of Michigan where families have faced 32 consecutive months of double-digit unemployment. Everything we do must be viewed through the lens of job creation and judged by whether it will help or harm our economic recovery. The truth is, Americans can’t go to work at factories and facilities that never open, and current regulatory threats and economic uncertainty are standing in the way of a growing economy. Even worse, many looming regulations threaten to ship our jobs overseas - and once they are gone, we will not get them back.
“Our fall agenda is focused squarely on jobs, adding to the long list of pro-job policies that have moved through the U.S. House of Representatives this year. We will pass legislation to put the brakes on a regulatory train wreck that threatens to destroy millions of jobs and drain tens of billions of dollars from the economy. And we will continue pressing the president to approve an energy construction project with our trusted ally Canada that will create more than 100,000 jobs and reduce our dependence on Middle Eastern oil. Reducing regulatory threats, strengthening America’s energy security, and reducing spending to improve our long-term fiscal outlook are critical steps to get job creation back on track."
