AT PORT, SEN. BOND CRITICAL OF WATERWAYS USER FEE PROPOSAL

SCOTT CITY - A proposed inland waterways user fee would "destroy barge industries serving our nation" and have a detrimental impact on agriculture, U.S. Sen. Christopher Bond said Monday.

Speaking on the dock of the Southeast Missouri Regional Port Authority, the Republican senator criticized President Clinton's plan to raise $273 million in new taxes, including a BTU tax on energy. He termed the tax bill "a job killer."

The fuel tax proposed for the river industry "is greater than the profits of the barge industry," said Bond.

He compared the proposal to a tax plan approved several years ago by Congress to increase the luxury tax on yachts. Bond said legislators did not take into account the fact that people change their behavior when taxes are raised; when wealthy people stopped buying yachts, many people lost their jobs.

Bond said the $850 million in revenue generated by the additional tax on barge fuel would cost $620 million in increased deficiency payments to farmers.

Farmers would also be hit hard by $4.9 billion in proposed cuts for farm programs and additional energy taxes, he said. The taxes, Bond said, would reduce total farm income in Missouri by $700 million in what would be a good year, and $300 million in a bad year.

"It is clear that this whole plan was not well thought out," said Bond. "We hope it is stupidity and not malice it's one or the other."

C.W. Woody Rushing, a longtime port commissioner who helps manage four tow boats with his son, said use taxes on their four boats would increase from $2,900 a day to $19,000 a day under Clinton's tax proposals.

Rushing said he would have no choice but to pass those costs on to others.

Bond joined with other Republican senators this week in supporting a filibuster to delay action on Clinton's $16 million jobs stimulus package.

"We think Clinton's economic plan makes no sense. I believe it does nothing but raise the deficit," said Bond. "The reason we are blocking this stimulus package is, it does nothing but add about $16 billion to the deficit.

"It makes no sense to add another spending bill that is not paid for. If this spending package is worth spending tax dollars on, then it is worth being paid for by cutting other programs. We should cut spending, not jack up the deficit more."

Bond was also critical that the president had not sought input from Republican members of Congress. Bond complained that he presented Clinton with $220 billion in possible budget cuts two months ago that have been ignored.

Bond said Republicans will not allow Clinton to bypass them on key programs. "We told President Clinton that you can't steamroll this by us," said Bond. "We are not the Arkansas legislature."

The senator said Republicans are also keeping close watch on Clinton's health-care reform plan, which was being done without GOP input. "Republican Senate Leader Bob Dole has made it clear to the president that we want to work with him on a bipartisan basis," said Bond.

"If he offers it to us on a partisan take-it-or-leave-it basis, we'll probably leave it," Bond said.

Lloyd Smith, chief of staff to 8th District U.S. Rep. Bill Emerson, was also critical of the Clinton economic package. "The proposed BTU tax means big-time unemployment," said Smith. "This destroys jobs rather than creates jobs."

Bond said he thinks the filibuster by Senate Republicans is working, and will force Clinton to re-consider his stimulus plan. Bond said he was hoping everyone will step back and look at the plan during Easter recess because "we're on a very dangerous path."

Bond said: "All this taxation is stupid. It does not reduce spending."

He said Republicans prefer to reduce the deficit by cutting spending, not raising taxes.

The senator flashed a button mocking a sign in Clinton's campaign headquarters that emphasized the economy was the key issue. The revised button proclaimed: "It's the Spending Stupid."