No Budget, No Pay Act of 2013

Floor Speech

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Mr. SMITH of Nebraska. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 325. The bill is an important step toward getting our fiscal house in order because it requires the Senate to finally pass a budget, something American families and businesses do each and every day.

The Federal Government is currently in the process of accumulating its fifth consecutive trillion-dollar deficit. We need a serious, forward-looking plan to address the deficit. However, the Senate has gone nearly 4 years without even passing an annual budget.

Taking a year-by-year approach and addressing only discretionary spending will not solve our long-term spending problem. We must take a comprehensive, long-term approach to the Federal budget. A comprehensive approach to spending must also address the long-term solvency issues of entitlements such as Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. Without reform, spending will remain on an unsustainable path while the Medicare and Social Security trust funds are emptied before the majority of Americans who currently are paying in even qualify to become beneficiaries of those programs.

Today's legislation will allow us to work with the Senate in achieving this long-term deficit solution we know would meet the needs of Americans.

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