Today the House passed H.R. 273, a bill which would block President Barack Obama's December 27, 2012, executive order mandating across-the-board pay increases for federal employees -- including members of Congress -- regardless of merit. H.R. 273 would instead continue the existing federal employee pay freeze, which is currently in effect until March, through the end of 2013. Congressman Jones and his Republican colleagues voted for the bill, which would save taxpayers $11 billion over the next ten years. The bill now goes to the Senate for further consideration.
"I have been a frequent critic of the president's use of executive orders, and this was no exception," said Jones. "At a time when this country is already drowning in red ink and running trillion dollar annual deficits, it makes no sense to force taxpayers to borrow $11 billion more from the Chinese to fund an across-the-board pay increase for federal employees and members of Congress."
Source: http://jones.house.gov/press-release/jones-votes-block-obama-order-raise-federal-pay
