Edwards Statement on Passage of the Bipartisan Budget Act

Statement

Congresswoman Donna F. Edwards (MD-4) today issued the following statement regarding H.R. 1314, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015. The bill passed the House 266-167.

"Today's bipartisan budget agreement is an important step forward for the country. For far too long, the Republican majority has forced the American people to endure one manufactured crisis after another. The Republicans' failure to govern resulted in devastating budget cuts through sequestration, forcing federal employees to bear the burden of deficit reduction, shutting down the government in 2013, and downgrading the country's credit rating.

"While today's budget deal is not what I would have written, it is the product of Democrats challenging Republicans relentlessly to compromise in order to stop the cycle of crisis and provide a level of certainty to the federal government, the American people, and our economy. Namely, the legislation provides sequestration relief equally to defense and non-defense spending, saves millions of seniors from suffering serious increases in Medicare Part B costs, prevents a 20 percent reduction in Social Security disability benefits for millions of individuals, and ensures the full faith and credit of the United States through March, 2017. This is the type of cooperation the vast majority of the American people expect in Washington. I hope we can continue that effort to finalize the appropriations levels for federal spending for Fiscal Year 2016."

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