Issue Position: Reducing the Debt

Issue Position

Reducing the Nation's Debt

America's national debt is a national concern. Most American families understand how a rising national deficit can hurt future generations. That's why I support reducing our national debt to restore global faith in our domestic economy. When we pay down the nation's debt, we work to balance the national budget and restore good fiscal policies in Washington.

My first bill in the 112th Congress is a Constitutional Amendment that Requires Balanced Budget, HJ Res. 10.

This bill requires Congress to produce a balanced budget every fiscal year and requires the President to submit a balanced budget in his or her annual transmission to Congress.

Forty-nine states currently require an annual balanced budget and its time to hold the federal government to the same standard.

As a current Member of the Blue Dog Coalition, the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Coalition in Congress. This democratic coalition is committed to restoring responsible spending in Washington and they've worked hard to bring back the budget rules of the 1990s which helped turned then record deficits into record surpluses.

In the 111th Congress, the Blue Dog Coalition championed the return of Pay-As-You-Go (PAYGO) Spending Rules for Congress. PAYGO spending rules helped create a projected $5.6 trillion surplus in 2001 by ensuring that every dollar spent is offset by another dollar of savings elsewhere. Unfortunately in 2002, Congress let PAYGO rules expire and by 2010, the nation saw a record $12 trillion deficit.

Congress and the President brought PAYGO back into law, by passing the vitally important through both the House and Senate.

Real, Immediate Reforms

In the 111th, the Blue Dog Coalition introduced the Blue Dog Blueprint for Fiscal Reform. This 15 point plan includes a vitally important piece of legislation Congressman Cuellar authored known as "Performance Based Budgeting" or PBB, now public law. This plan will require all federal agencies to submit quarterly reviews to the public on how effectively they've allocated federal dollars. By requiring agencies to submit transparent spending reports, Congress can put good common sense policy towards common practice problems in our federal government.

HR 2142, the Government Performance and Results Modernization Act is legislation authored by Congressman Henry Cuellar and was recently signed into law on January 4, 2011.

This law would require Federal agencies to set clear performance goals that can be accurately measured and publicly reported in a more transparent way. It brings accountability and more information on what works and what does not work in the government for lawmakers to make better informed budgetary decisions.

Key Points:

The House originally passed the bill by voice vote on June 16. The Senate passed its version by unanimous consent on December 16. On December 21, 2010 the House passed HR 2142 by a vote of 216 -- 139. It was signed by the President on January 4, 2011.

This bill is designed to help prevent unnecessary, wasteful government spending, by telling us which federal agencies and programs are working and which are not. Under the bill, with aggressive oversight and better information, Congress can better use its "power of the purse" to reward effectiveness and punish waste, and steer agencies towards more effective, results-oriented government.

This bipartisan bill will help reduce the nation's deficit by shining a light on ineffective federal programs and creating a mechanism to intervene if agencies fail to meet their goals. Specifically, it empowers OMB and Congress to recommend or take action, including legislative and reauthorization changes, to address programs that fail to meet their goals. With greater government efficiency, we can produce cost savings for every American taxpayer.

The bill will require the federal government to adopt the same type of performance-based budgeting standards that are being used successfully in many state governments to rein in spending and reduce government waste, fraud and abuse.

This bipartisan bill is an authorizing measure and will not add to the deficit. Its authorization would be subject to appropriations and the bill does not have PAYGO implications. As the CBO has stated, the bill "does not affect spending or revenues" and it "could lead to more effective management of agencies at lower cost."

This bill has bipartisan support in both the House and Senate. In the Senate, it passed by unanimous consent -- and has the strong support of such GOP Senators as Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK). In the House, the bill has 55 bipartisan cosponsors, including Reps. Todd Platts (R-PA) and Michael McCaul (R-TX).

This bipartisan bill also has the strong support of such nonpartisan groups as Taxpayers for Common Sense and such Republicans outside Congress as Robert Shea, Associate OMB Director under President George W. Bush. In his letter of support, Mr. Shea states, "I led performance improvement efforts during my tenure in the George W. Bush Administration. … The provisions of this bill would have greatly enhanced these efforts had they been in place."

Congressman Cuellar's law is designed to help prevent unnecessary, wasteful government spending, by telling us which federal agencies and programs are working and which are not.

Following is an overview of some of the key features.

Shines light on ineffective federal programs to root out wasteful spending. Under the bill, federal agencies are required to clearly identify ambitious, priority goals and to assess their agency's performance and effectiveness. This will provide the needed information to make informed budgetary decisions.

Heightens transparency to generate government credibility. The performance and effectiveness information generated by federal agencies under the bill will be easily accessible and made publicly available to Congress and the American people.

Increases government accountability. Federal agencies will be held accountable by requiring all agencies to conduct quarterly performance reports on how effectively they are working to meet their goals. More government accountability leads to more government credibility.

Creates a mechanism to penalize agencies that fail to meet goals. If an agency fails to meet its performance goals, OMB must submit recommendations to Congress on actions and incentives to improve the agency's performance. This mechanism will ensure that goals are met and actively pursued throughout the year.

Eliminates duplicative, outdated, and unused performance reporting required under current law. In the first year, federal agencies must identify at least 10 percent of the performance reports the agency is required to submit to Congress as outdated or duplicative. This will eliminate stacks of unused reports that no one currently reads or uses.

Elevates the role of agencies to bring accountability. The bill makes the Chief Operating Officer of each federal agency accountable for the performance and operational success of that agency. Accountability for performance will no longer be buried in a planning office.

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