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Washington, DC -- U.S. Representative Michael A. Arcuri (D-Utica) voted yesterday to balance the federal budget by 2012, provide significant tax relief for middle-class families in Upstate New York and strengthen homeland security.
“The budget we passed reflects the priorities of families across Upstate New York: fiscal responsibility, tax relief and security at home,” Arcuri said. “I am proud to support a budget that restores fiscal responsibility and accountability to how we spend tax-payers’ hard-earned dollars. Every American family faces the burden of balancing their checkbook each month – it is only right that Congress does the same.”
“It is time to invest in alternative energy, provide health care for American children and improve our infrastructure and homeland security. By reigning in government waste, we can do all of these things in a responsible way that provides for families in Upstate New York for generations to come.”
Specifically, the fiscal year 2009 Budget Resolution passed by the House would:
- Extend middle class tax relief - including the child tax credit, marriage penalty relief, the 10 percent bracket and the deduction for State and local sales taxes. It also prevents over 20 million middle-income American families from being hit by the alternative minimum tax (AMT). In 2004, 437,000 New York families were subject to the AMT.
- Help children in Upstate New York and across the county with up to $50 billion for children’s health insurance, enough to reduce the number of uninsured children over the next five years. The budget also rejects the President’s harmful cuts to Medicaid and Medicare and provides for program improvements to Medicare and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), helping the 396,042 children currently enrolled in New York’s SCHIP program (CHPlus).
- Foster alternative energy development and production by investing $6.1 billion in renewable energy and energy efficiency programs, 22% more than in 2008. This includes new initiatives to create “green collar jobs” that will boost our economy and lower consumer costs.
- Strengthen national defense by improving military readiness, especially for the National Guard and Reserve. The budget increases funding for critical homeland security programs and reject cuts in the President’s budget to key first responder and terrorism prevention programs in New York, such as the State Homeland Security Grant Program and Firefighter Assistance Grants.
- Address veterans’ needs by rejecting the President’s proposed new fees and increasing veterans funding by $3.6 billion, enough to allow the Veterans Administration to treat 5.8 million patients in 2009, including 333,275 Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans. The budget also calls for enhanced pay and benefits to improve the quality of life of active duty troops and their families.
- Provide $7.1 billion above the President’s 2009 level for education, job training, and social services programs, which could be used for No Child Left Behind initiatives to ensure that children can read and achieve at grade level.
- Protect American workers by continuing the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) that has increased private-sector investment in U.S. manufacturing by an estimated $1.5 billion and created or retained 37,000 jobs. The budget also reauthorizes the trade adjustment assistance program to give 130,000 workers who lost their jobs when their companies moved offshore access to training and income support. Since 1974, employees of businesses in the 24th district applied for trade adjustment assistance 227 times – more than one application every two months.
- Improve national transportation infrastructure with increased funding for highway programs and grants to improve local airports. To protect our nation’s drinking water, the budget rejects the President’s $2.9 billion cut to water and natural resources programs.
Arcuri is a member of the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Coalition, which endorsed the fiscal year 2009 Budget Resolution because of its adherence to pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) budget discipline and provisions to eliminate wasteful government spending.
Nonpartisan groups, such as the Concord Coalition and the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, have endorsed this budget’s approach to restoring fiscal accountability. A number of veterans’ organizations have also come out in support for the budget, including AMVETS, Disabled American Veterans, Paralyzed Veterans of America, Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, and Vietnam Veterans of America.
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