The News-Herald - Dave Joyce: Bipartisan Bill will Save Taxpayers Billions

Op-Ed

By Dave Joyce

Another Viewpoint is a column The News-Herald makes available so all sides of issues may by aired. Rep. Dave Joyce, of Russell Township, represents Ohio's 14th Congressional District.

I was born and raised in Northeast Ohio and have lived here almost my entire life, raising my family in the same neighborhood I grew up in. Since being sworn into office, I've hit the ground running by meeting with the small business owners, parents, teachers, workers and entrepreneurs in our community. During my travels, a funny thing has happened. No matter where I am, no matter who I'm meeting with, I almost always hear "we sent you to Washington to work across party lines and actually get something done." Well, I've heard you loud and clear and that's why I'm leading a bipartisan movement to cut government waste and save Ohio taxpayers money.

Recently, I introduced the SAVE Act -- that's the Savings, Accountability, Value and Efficiency Act -- with a freshman Democrat from Florida. This bipartisan bill could save taxpayers $200 billion over 10 years by reducing government waste and unnecessary programs. At a time in which we're borrowing billions of dollars a day from countries like China, these are practical and common sense cuts. In fact, they were actually outlined in the president's own economic report.

Let me give you some examples. My bill will save taxpayers $137 million by getting rid of a duplicative catfish inspection program. It will cut $10 billion by taking a hard look at 400,000 government buildings and reducing costs associated with unused or underutilized space. Essentially, we are turning off the lights in empty rooms. It will save taxpayers $50 billion by forcing federal agencies to buy necessary items in Costco-like quantities and prices, rather than reordering more expensive smaller amounts.

To me, these are the common sense and practical measures families all across Northeast Ohio are already using, so it's about time the federal government does the same. At a crossroads where our government stands $16 trillion in debt and is paying $200 billion a year on just the interest of that debt, it should be a priority to control our spending. It's my hope that this bipartisan bill will pass the House and eventually become law, because Ohio families have more room to breathe when Washington tightens its belt.

I'd like to thank all of those people who have given me feedback over the past few months and encourage them, and others, to continue this conversation by visiting my website (joyce.house.gov) or stopping by my office. Together, we can put aside our red and blue jerseys and put on our red, white and blue jerseys and fight for the future of this nation we all love so dearly.

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