Senator Bayh continues to be one of the leading voices on Capitol Hill demanding fiscal responsibility and reigning in wasteful government spending. Spending on Congressional pet projects and government waste has contributed to an unsustainable national debt that is increasingly financed by foreign governments. In response, Senator Bayh has successfully advocated for more transparency so taxpayers know who is requesting wasteful earmarks and called for closing tax loopholes and returning to honest budgeting in the Senate.

Earmark Reform

Senator Bayh has consistently opposed wasteful earmarks—inappropriate projects included in appropriation bills at the request of members of Congress. In 2005, Senator Bayh was one of only 15 Senators to oppose the infamous “Bridge to Nowhere,” a $223 million project to connect a small Alaskan island to the mainland. Senator Bayh was a strong advocate for the Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act of 2007, which now requires Senators to attach their names to an earmark and provide information on the intended recipients and the purpose of the project. The new rules shed light on Senators who try to sneak in funding for bridges to nowhere and other wasteful government spending projects. In addition, Senator Bayh has supported the presidential line-item veto, so that the President has the ability to veto wasteful spending projects.

Living Within Our Means

The first step in reducing the national debt is balancing the federal budget. In recent years, the federal government has consistently spent more money than it has taken in, resulting in the government having to borrow money to meet its obligations. The more the government borrows money, the more it must pay in interest in future years. Senator Bayh believes this cycle must end, and fiscal discipline in Washington needs to be restored. Bayh has consistently called for and supported pay-as-you-go (or PAYGO) rules for the Senate. Under PAYGO, no new spending would be authorized unless it was paid for, preferably with spending cuts. Bayh opposed the Fiscal Year 2008 Omnibus Appropriations and the Fiscal Year 2009 Budget Resolution because of their exorbitant spending levels.

Reducing the Debt

The current national debt is more than $9.2 trillion, almost double from what it was just eight years ago. It is currently growing at a rate of almost $1 million a minute. Senator Bayh believes that the growing national debt, especially the growing debt held by foreign governments, undermines the nation’s economy and raises national security concerns, as well as leaves an undue debt burden on future generations. To rein in the national debt, Senator Bayh advocates stopping wasteful spending before it starts by balancing the federal budget, ending frivolous earmarks, ending corporate subsidies and closing tax loopholes.

World Bank Accountability

As part of his effort to be a good steward of taxpayer dollars, Senator Bayh has continually pushed for the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to investigate whether the World Bank has taken adequate steps to address graft and ensure that U.S. taxpayer money is assisting the people of the developing countries and not their corrupt leaders. Last year Congress allocated nearly $1 billion to the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA), which provides interest-free loans to the poorest countries of the world to help them develop. As Chairman of the Subcommittee on Security and International Trade and Finance, Bayh has repeatedly called for reform, accountability, and openness at the World Bank.

Iraq Reconstruction Costs

The American taxpayers have spent over $44 billion for reconstruction in Iraq. With the Iraqi government sitting on record oil profits, Senator Bayh believes that it is past time for Iraq to pay for its own reconstruction. Along with Senators Ben Nelson of Nebraska and Susan Collins of Maine, Senator Bayh has proposed a ban on the United States funding major reconstruction projects in Iraq. Under their proposal, Iraq would be required to cover all or part of the costs of reconstruction projects, joint missions with coalition forces and training and equipment for their own troops.