Rep. Johnson Supports PAYGO Legislation

Press Release

Rep. Johnson Supports PAYGO Legislation

Congressman seeks to reestablish ‘fiscal responsibility'

Rep. Hank Johnson was pleased to see pay-as-you-go legislation or PAYGO pass the House today. It's the first step in re-establishing fiscal responsibility to Washington, Johnson said.

"A credible PAYGO law will help reaffirm fiscal discipline by forcing Congress to prioritize essential investments and cut wasteful spending and subsidies," said Johnson. "Any increase in spending would have to be offset by decreases in spending elsewhere in the budget."

PAYGO or H.R. 2920 would re-introduce a budget rule the Clinton Administration used to create record surpluses in 1990s - a rule the Bush Administration abandoned in 2002 that allowed huge tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans and run-away deficit spending.

Johnson acknowledged that the $787 billion Recovery Act represents about 7 percent of the nation's $1.7 trillion deficit, but echoed Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's assessment that the stimulus package was an essential to "stabilize" the economy in deep recession and turn it around.

"The Economic Recovery Act was necessary as an emergency response to this fiscal crisis," said Johnson. "But deficit spending is not sustainable for the long term. I'm committed to bringing the deficit down by paying for what we buy instead of constant borrowing."

That includes energy legislation and health care reform, said Johnson, who supports progressive policies as long as the nation has the means to pay for it.

"What you're not hearing in the reform debate is that energy, health care and education costs are going to continue to skyrocket if we do nothing," said Johnson. "PAYGO will help provide the kind of fiscal discipline needed to invest in these crucial areas while addressing our rapidly growing deficits and long-term debt."

Source