U.S. Rep. Greg Pence, R-Indiana, speaks on Thursday during an Aspire Legislation Matters luncheon at Valle Vista Golf Club and Conference Center in Greenwood.
Noah Crenshaw | Daily Journal
A day after President Joe Biden announced the federal government would erase up to $20,000 in student loan debt for millions of Americans, Rep. Greg Pence, R-Indiana, spoke about that and more during a chamber luncheon Thursday in Greenwood.
Pence was the featured guest at Aspire Johnson County’s fourth Legislation Matters event of the year, held at Valle Vista Golf Club and Conference Center in Greenwood. Pence represents Indiana’s Sixth Congressional District, which will include Johnson County starting in January. Aspire invited Pence to give him an early opportunity to speak with local business leaders, said Christian Maslowski, Aspire Johnson County president and CEO and moderator of the Q&A.
Pence, a Columbus native, was expected to discuss public policy and specific legislation related to local businesses during the Q&A portion of the lunch. Before he did, he spent a brief moment talking about former Indiana Rep. Jackie Walorski, who was killed in a car crash in northern Indiana earlier this month.
Pence was close to Walorski and said she was a “credibly qualified” leader who likely would have moved up to the top ranks of Congress.
“I’m going to miss her. She was a superstar,” Pence said. “My wife loved her; everybody loved her.”
Student loan debt
One of the first topics discussed was the Biden administration’s plan to erase up to $20,000 in federal student loan debt for those with incomes below $125,000 a year, or households that earn less than $250,000.
Pence told the business leaders that while the president has the authority to do so under “pandemic emergency,” and while he’s not an attorney, he believes there’s a chance that it may be challenged in court.
He said he does not agree with the decision and it is unfair for those who joined the military to pay for school and for the parents who worked two jobs to help their children go to college. Pence himself worked while building a real estate business to pay for college for his four children, he said.
“Why aren’t we talking about schools and academia and the cost of education and what’s happened there in the last 30 years, instead of simply saying, ‘Oh, we’ll forgive your product — your students’ debt — at $10,000, $20,000 a year,’” Pence said.
Economic outlook
Pence says the “wage inflation” which has occurred in the last several months is putting some companies out of business. Some company representatives have said if sales soften, they would be in trouble, he said.
Pence believes people should be preparing for the worst and hoping for the best, he said.
Maslowski and Pence asked business leaders in the audience what they thought about the possibility of a recession. While many people in the audience said they felt the country was heading toward a recession, some did not. At least one business leader believes the country is already there.
Pence said Indiana in particular is lucky to have the leadership it has and the fiscal responsibility that officials have exhibited despite the tough times the state has faced. While Pence did not agree with the state’s plans to issue another taxpayer refund, he encouraged business leaders to ask their lawmakers to consider severing the state’s dependency on funds from Washington, D.C., citing the state’s fiscal reserves.
Attracting talent
Workforce development and talent attraction are issues companies are struggling with across the country, Maslowski said. When asked what Congress is doing to help states achieve workforce development goals, Pence said he hopes Congress will not get involved and allow companies to make their own decisions on that.
However, Pence said he has noticed more companies bringing training back home, which he hopes will continue. For example, Cook Medical in Bloomington is building company housing and allowing their employees to go to school online during a designated work day, he said.
More companies should go back to the old way of investing in towns to help with hiring and retaining employees. Pence said he grew up in a “company town” and companies like Cummins helped build Columbus, he said.
“I am seeing companies that are doing what I just said, and they’re not having a turnover. Turnover is incredibly expensive … and so I think getting companies directly getting involved in that on their own behalf is something you’ll see more of in the future,” Pence said.
Energy
Pence, who serves on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, told business leaders he plans to introduce a resolution that would call for a “more sensible” conversation about moving toward greener transportation, like electric vehicles. Federal officials are moving a little too fast on this issue, he said.
Officials had to open two coal-burning plants in southern Indiana because the state was facing the possibility of brownouts. Coal is a cheap and important fuel to Indiana, and while Duke Energy is switching to natural gas, it’s difficult to fully switch over if federal officials won’t allow them to put in a pipeline, he said.
“That’s been a challenge with the administration,” he said. “So I’m asking for a little more sensibility as we move forward with carbon reduction or the electrification transportation industry.”
This issue is something he is very focused on, and he hopes Republicans will be able to talk more about how to get there sensibly if they retake the House. Pence believes they have a high probability of doing so, he said.
Pence is currently running for reelection and will face Democrat Cynthia “Cinde” Wirth in November.
Big Tech
Maslowski asked Pence about Big Tech and discussions within Congress to step in and hold companies accountable for the information they collect from Americans. Pence, who also serves on the House Consumer Protection Committee, believes that if companies are going to be collecting this data and selling it, then they should not only inform people about what data is being collected but they should also compensate Americans.
“Tell me exactly what you’re collecting on me, and then compensate me if I choose to do that,” Pence said.
For many companies, Pence said it’s become profitable for companies to sell information. There should be an opt-in and disclosure similar to the Truth in Lending Act, he said.
“These are the things you need to know … and this is in the business,” Pence said. “That’s why these tech companies are becoming bigger and bigger for gathering the information; they’re selling it.”
Foreign policy and Taiwan
Maslowski and Pence also discussed foreign policy and recent congressional visits to Taiwan. Recent visits are not any different from what’s been going on before, but there’s an increased focus because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Pence said.
“I do not believe that China is going to go and take Taiwan over,” he said.
China is an “economic enemy” and Pence is hoping companies will bring U.S. jobs back home from overseas. When Pence came back to southern Indiana after being away for a time, he couldn’t believe how many ghost towns there were due to manufacturing moving overseas, he said.
“They are taking advantage of that all over the world, and we have got to get our companies to come back here,” Pence said.
