Issue Position: Good Government

Issue Position

As someone who believes holding office is public service, Susan is committed to making sure the federal government lives up to the ideals and trust of the American people. Susan knows how hard taxpayers work for their money and is a strong supporter of efficiency and transparency in federal spending.

Earmarks:

Earmarks will not be part of the House appropriations process this year. Although she supports certain local projects such as the San Diego Trolley that have been funded by earmarks in the past, Susan thinks the funding system can be vastly improved to make it more accountable. Now, if Members of Congress want to advocate for specific district projects, they will have to propose an amendment and gain a majority of their colleagues' votes.

Before the earmark ban, Susan voted to change House rules to require that federal funding for earmarks be listed in the bill along with the name of the Representative who made the funding request. While earmarks are only a small fraction of the overall federal budget, Susan believes that transparency is the best way to reduce corruption and backroom dealings.

Pay and Benefits for Members of Congress:

In these tough economic times when Americans are tightening their belts, Susan believes Congress should, too. Susan has always believed that Members of Congress shouldn't receive unfair perks, especially since they are public servants.

* Susan has consistently opposed pay increases for Members of Congress and voted to cut her own office budget by 5 percent.

* Like other Americans, Susan and other Members of Congress pay into Social Security.

* Susan and her colleagues in Congress participate in the same health care and retirement plans as other federal government workers. Members of Congress have the same retirement and health insurance options as federal food inspectors, air traffic controllers, computer programmers and administrative workers. The new health care bill will cover Members of Congress just like other Americans--there is not and should not be special treatment.

Election Reform:

As a former President of the San Diego League of Women Voters, Susan has a strong interest in bettering the federal elections process. In the 111th Congress, Susan served on the House Administration Subcommittee on Elections. Due to the change in seat allocation in the 112th Congress, Susan no longer serves on this committee but is still actively engaged on issues of election integrity.

Susan has consistently introduced inexpensive, commonsense election reform measures to increase security, efficiency and participation in federal elections.

*The Universal Right To Vote By Mail Act - Allows voters in all states to vote by mail for any reason. Twenty-nine states and the District of Columbia currently allow no-excuse absentee voting and it's very popular there. In the other states, voters must have a specific reason such as age, disability or travel to request an absentee ballot. In these states, work and childcare are often not valid reasons to vote by mail. This bill would make voting more convenient and would level the playing field by allowing all voters the same opportunity. It also removes such additional requirements as notary signatures, doctor's notes and invasive personal information requests.

* The Federal Election Integrity Act -- Would prohibit chief state election administration officials from taking active part in political campaigns with respect to any elections for federal office over which the officials have supervisory authority.

This bill passed the House on September 29, 2010. To read the press release click here. New York Times article on this issue

* The TRAC Act - Provides grants to states for establishing absentee ballot tracking systems. To be eligible, tracking systems must allow voters to find out (online or by using a 1-800 phone number) whether an elections office has sent out a ballot, whether a completed ballot has arrived back at the registrar's office, whether the registrar has counted the ballot, and if not, why not. H.R. 2510 passed the House on July 30, 2009 by voice vote.

Campaign Finance Reform:

* Susan has long supported public campaign financing because she believes it has the potential to limit the outsized influence of special interests in our electoral process.

* Susan opposed the Citizens United ruling and was a strong supporter of the DISCLOSE Act to bring transparency to campaign advertising.

Responsive Government:

* As the proud Representative of California's 53rd district, Susan makes it a priority to make sure she and her staff listen carefully to constituent input and are as responsive to community concerns as possible.

* Susan tries to answer every constituent email and letter she receives.

* Susan and her staff meet with any constituent who requests a meeting.

* Susan and her staff make casework inquiries for any constituent who requests such services.

* Susan works hard to be accessible by holding listening sessions with constituents by phone and in person and bysending regular Congressional reports by e-mail, Facebook and postal mail.

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