U.S. Representative

Posted in the Lakeland Ledger By Rep. Ross Tax Day has to be one of the most dreaded days of the year. I think everyone agrees: We all spend too much time filing our taxes just so the government can take our hard-earned money and spend it the way it wants. Not only do we pay too much in taxes, but the actual process of handing our money over to the government is a nightmare. The Internal Revenue Service's tax code is too complex and, for many families and small businesses, the tax rates themselv... Read more

By Rep. Dennis A. Ross Published in Roll Call March 21, 2013, 7:06 p.m. Critics of “e-fairness,” who cite concerns over hidden tax increases, are well-intentioned but often misguided. I strongly believe e-fairness — closing the online sales tax loophole and requiring online businesses to collect and remit sales taxes like brick-and-mortar businesses are required to — is based on conservative principles and will be a real benefit to communities and the economy as a whole. As a conservative, I am ... Read more

By DENNIS ROSS Published: Monday, February 25, 2013 at 12:09 a.m. Featured in the Lakeland Ledger and the Tampa Tribune In just a few days, mandatory, across-the-board federal-government spending cuts will take effect. These cuts are often referred to as the sequester. The president initially proposed the sequester in 2011. Congress voted on the legislation. I voted no because the bill tasked a "super committee" with finding the cuts and I didn't want to leave these major cuts up to just a few p... Read more

By Rep. Ross Published in Florida Citrus Mutual's The Triangle Florida is blessed with a booming agriculture sector. In 2012, we produced 62 percent of all of the oranges in the United States, equating to $1.2 billion. Our agriculture sector - from citrus to sugarcane to strawberries - is incredibly robust. Across the state, and even across the country, we have a serious need for assistance on our farms and in our groves. To address this need, I recently introduced H.R. 242, the Legal Agricultur... Read more

By Rep. Ross In the Tampa Tribune and Lakeland Ledger Published: January 15, 2013 Throughout the past few weeks our nation was consumed with the fiscal cliff, and rightly so. I voted against the fiscal cliff Senate amendment to H.R. 8, the American Taxpayer Relief Act, because it was not a viable long-term solution for America in order to regain control of our finances. The Senate amendment only addressed the expiring tax rates and did nothing to address Congress's out-of-control spending. I am ... Read more

By Rep. Ross Tampa Tribune I'm no theologian, but I am pretty sure you cannot stand before almighty God on the Day of Judgment and say, "I paid my taxes." No, our obligation to our fellow man is not collective; it is personal. The late president of the Southern Baptist Convention, Adrian Pierce Rogers, once famously said, "The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else." And he is absolutely right. The recent Obamacare decision only crys... Read more

By Rep. Ross In the Lakeland Ledger Published: Tuesday, May 29, 2012 at 2:34 a.m. The United States Postal Service does not take one dime of taxpayer money. You've heard this, I've heard this, and it is something postal employees say to me time and time again. For the most part, it is absolutely true. It is what postal unions won't tell you that should scare every taxpayer. Before I scare you, let me say that the USPS is home to hundreds of thousands of dedicated, hard-working American citizens... Read more

(Winter Haven NewsChief) Popcorn Populism vs. Economic Reality By. US Rep. Dennis A. Ross (FL - 12) The Super Committee failed and the blame game begins. The popcorn populists continue the “millionaires and billionaires” drumbeat while the Secretary of Defense sounds the alarm on massive defense cuts while the President threatens to veto anything that prevents the very same cuts. So let’s look at the facts But be prepared. What you read, might surprise you. According to the Office of Management ... Read more

By: Rep. Ross Lakeland Ledger The credit rating of the United States is downgraded and many, including The Ledger editorial page, are looking to assign blame. It was the tea party, the president, the Congress or rating agencies that caused this crisis. Or if you just read The Ledger, you would think it was solely my fault because of my militant intransigence and hatred of the elderly, the poor and the middle class. (I am being slightly sarcastic.) If you can't take credit, the next step in the p... Read more

Published in the Lakeland Ledger on July 9, 2011 By US Representative Dennis A. Ross Like Blondie and Tuco in “The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly,” Democrats and Republicans, even if they don’t trust each other, need to work together to solve our looming debt and entitlement budget crisis. This can be done, as President Clinton and Speaker Gingrich demonstrated in the mid 90s. The issue facing us today, as demonstrated by the July 6 editorial in the Ledger, is that some of us recognize the catastro... Read more