How We Can Start Saving You Money

Statement

Last week was a busy one. To start things off right, I announced the introduction of my Shrink our Spending initiative into the 114th Congress. This is an annual program that I began last year to identify and cut wasteful spending in our budget. In last year's SOS, while I looked at only a few programs, I managed to find over two trillion of your hard-earned tax dollars ready to be saved. This year I aimed even higher. Watch the video below to learn more.

On Thursday the House began voting on some big measures. First, the House passed the Conference Report to Accompany S.Con.Res. 11, a bill that established the budget for the United States Government for Fiscal Year 2016 and set forth appropriate budgetary levels for 2017 to 2025. We passed the bill by a vote of 226-197. This budget achieves balance within 10 years, without raising taxes, reducing total spending by more than $5 trillion. Moreover, the Conference Report calls on the committees of jurisdiction to repeal the Affordable Care Act through reconciliation; ensures that total defense resources are above the President's request in the five and ten year budget window; and grows the economy by more than $400 billion over the next ten years, according to CBO estimates.

The House also passed H.R. 2029, the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2016, by a vote of 255-163. H.R. 2029 provides $171 billion in budget authority for the FY 2016 programs and activities funded in the bill. The bill provides $163.2 billion in discretionary and mandatory spending for the benefits and medical care of our nation's veterans (an increase of $4.1 billion), and $7.7 billion in discretionary spending for military construction and family housing (an increase of $904 million). H.R. 2029 provides $76.6 billion in discretionary funding--a $4.6 billion increase and $2.2 billion below the President's budget request.

The House also took action to defend religious freedom when it passed H.J.Res. 43, a resolution disapproving the action of the District of Columbia Council in approving the Reproductive Health Non-Discrimination Amendment Act of 2014, by a vote of 228-192. H.J. Res. 43 disapproves and prevents implementation of the Reproductive Health and Nondiscrimination Act (RHNDA) within the District of Columbia, which was passed by the D.C. council in December, 2014 ostensibly to prevent employers from taking punitive action against any employees for using abortion services or birth control. In reality, the RHNDA would restrict the ability of organizations within the District of Columbia to make employment decisions in line with their deeply held beliefs. These restrictions would apply to both religious and political organizations.

Finally, on Friday, the House passed H.R. 2028, the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2016, by a vote of 240-177. H.R. 2028 provides funding for the Department of Energy, the Army Corps of Engineers, and vital national defense nuclear weapons activities. The legislation provides a total of $35.4 billion in discretionary funding for FY 2016, which is $1.2 billion above the FY 2015 level. The bill prioritizes funding for national security, providing increases for nuclear weapons programs above fiscal year 2015, and protects funding for critical national and regional waterways.


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