OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

Transportation, Treasury, Housing and Urban Development, the Judiciary, the District of Columbia and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 2007

Date: June 14, 2006
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Transportation Government Budget and Spending


TRANSPORTATION, TREASURY, HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT, THE JUDICIARY, THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA AND INDEPENDENT AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2007 -- (House of Representatives - June 14, 2006)

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. YOUNG of Florida. Mr. Chairman, during the discussion on these appropriation bills, there have been a number of amendments to strike out issues that were added by the committee rather than requested by the administration. I think that is a good application of the process, and I think that each one of these items should stand on their own merit. But I think that it would be a mistake to believe that this was a procedure that was not acceptable under the Constitution.

For example, I am holding a pocket copy of the Constitution that I carry all the time, and I read it very closely, having worked with appropriations for many, many years. And I find nothing at all in this Constitution that says that Congress can only appropriate that money which has been requested by the executive branch of government. There is nothing at all in here that says that, nothing at all that says that we can only consider requests by the executive branch of the government.

But in Article I, Section 9, there is a very specific provision in the Constitution that says the executive branch of government or any of the agencies of the government cannot spend any money that has not first been appropriated by the Congress of the United States.

So I say again that if there are those who are concerned that the process is being abused, the Constitution is being protected by Members who are offering projects to be included in the appropriations bills. And I say again those who are trying to strike those are certainly within their right to do that, and certainly that is part of the process, and each one of those projects should stand on their own merit. But there is absolutely nothing in the Constitution that prohibits the ability of Members of Congress to suggest what should or should not be included in an appropriations bill.

And I repeat the article that I referred to is Article I, Section 9, and I have referred to that many, many times in the past.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

http://thomas.loc.gov/

arrow_upward