Larsen Votes Against Congressional Pay Raise To Save Taxpayer Dollars

Statement

Yesterday, U.S. Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) voted against a Congressional pay raise for 2011 in order to save taxpayer dollars.

"With so many folks still out of work and struggling to make ends meet, I am not going to vote to give myself, or any other Member of Congress a pay raise," said Rep. Larsen. "In these tough economic times, we need to be laser-focused on getting people back to work and making sure our small businesses have the tools they need to grow and start hiring again."

The U.S. Senate already passed identical legislation last week to deny Members of Congress the automatic $1,600 pay raise.

"Yesterday's vote was an easy choice. Hardworking families in my district are not getting pay raises so it is certainly not an appropriate time for Members of Congress to get one," said Rep. Larsen. "Moving forward we are going to face some much tougher decisions about where to save money in the budget but I am committed to making tough fiscal choices that will rein in spending and tackle our unsustainably high deficit, so we can create an economic environment that will support good jobs and grow our economy well into the future."

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