While the U.S. economy is in a nascent recovery, U.S. Rep.

Phil English,R-3rd, is stumping his bill, The Homeland Investment Act of 2003, that he said would help boost investment in U.S. jobs and stimulate the economy.

"I am stumping for a common-sense bill that would pump $300 billion into the U.S. economy, over $15 billion in revenue to the government, and create 666,000 jobs in the first year," English said Monday.

The congressman, a member of the House Ways and Means Committee and original sponsor of the bill, said his measure is preferable to one proposed by Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry.

"My bill, unlike Sen. Kerry's recent proposal, is based on research, not rhetoric; and would be the most effective answer to outsourcing yet contemplated."

The Homeland Investment Act would reduce for one year the tax rate on American companies' foreign earnings to 5.25 percent.

Currently, U.S. firms operating overseas pay a 35 percent tax, minus any taxes they've paid abroad, when they bring foreign-earned income back to the U.S.

Companies can avoid paying U.S. taxes simply by leaving that investment abroad. American companies overseas then are encouraged to create jobs there, instead of in the U.S.

It is estimated that hundreds of billions of dollars in profits are "stranded" abroad, English said.

He said studies by economists at JP Morgan Chase and Dr. Allen Sinai of Decision Economics Inc. concluded enactment of his bill would spur $300 billion of capital flow into the U.S., with $15 billion going to the Treasury in the first year, and 666,000 new jobs by 2005.

The Homeland Investment Act was introduced in February 2003 and has since been under consideration in the Ways and Means Committee as a potential component of foreign sales corporation and extraterritorial tax reform.

A similar measure in the Senate was passed 75-25 last year and will be voted on soon.

Legislation sponsored by state Rep.

Scott Hutchinson, R-64th, that would make sure families of emergency responders receive death benefits they should rightly be guaranteed recently passed the House and is on its way to the Senate.

The measure is part of a House legislative package designed to help Pennsylvania's first responders, its National Guardsmen and Reservists fighting the war on terror and their families by clearing obstacles that inflict needless hassle in their strained lives.

"Sadly, many middle-aged firefighters and other emergency responders put all their energy into answering the call for assistance, only to return home, suffer and die from a heart attack or stroke within several hours," Hutchinson said.

"However, more often than not, in such incidents, it has been ruled that the death was not a direct result of an injury sustained in the line of duty. As a result, families receive no benefits even though the deaths were clearly triggered by the rigors of the job."

According to National Volunteer Fire Commission statistics, nearly half of all firefighter fatalities, though clearly caused by the rigors of the job, are not covered because they were heart-related.

Hutchinson said current state law is ambiguous on heart attacks and strokes, particularly those that occur after the incident or training exercise.

His bill addresses the provision of state death benefits for Pennsylvania's protectors who die of a heart attack or stroke that occurs within 24 hours of a physical training exercise or emergency response.

"We also amended the bill to raise the state death benefit to $100,000, which then is adjusted by annual inflation standards," Hutchinson said. "The current death benefit is $62,036 with an inflation adjustment provision."

U.S. Sen.

Arlen Specter, R-Pa., introduced Wednesday in the Senate legislation that would allow Americans to save money in special accounts without the penalty of taxes and with no limits based on age or income.

Specter's bill would create Lifetime Savings Accounts that could be used for any type of personal savings in a single, tax-free account. Individuals would be able to make penalty-free withdrawals at any time and with no holding period.

"Congress should reward - not punish - responsible financial behavior," Specter said. "By reducing the intimidation and hassle of saving money, people will have the ability to develop and improve their financial habits."

The U.S. Senate last week approved an amendment by Sen.

Rick Santorum, R-Pa., chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, that would help Americans make the successful transition from welfare programs into the job market.

The amendment is now part of legislation, the Jumpstart Our Business Strength Act.

The JOBS Act seeks to create and protect American jobs. Santorum's amendment would extend two low-cost public-private partnerships - the Work Opportunity Tax Credit and the Welfare-to-Work Tax Credit - for two more years.

He said the goal of the two partnerships is to provide a means by which individuals can move from welfare to a life of work and dignity.

During the past seven years, Santorum said the public-private partnership programs have helped 2,700,000 Americans move from dependency on public assistance into productive private sector jobs.

The Council for Northeast Dairy Cooperatives last week endorsed U.S. Sen.

Arlen Specter, R-Pa., for re-election, calling him a champion for the state's dairy industry.

The council represents more than 5,000 dairy farmers in Pennsylvania.

U.S. Rep. Phil English, R-3rd, recently announced the release of his new campaign Web site www.philenglish.org.