Gordon Casts Vote For Fiscal Responsibility
January 5, 2007, WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Bart Gordon voted today (Fri, Jan. 5) to prevent the U.S. House of Representatives from considering legislation that will increase the nation’s deficit.
The House passed a rule that will enact “pay as you go,” or PAYGO, spending rules. The rules require House legislation that proposes spending increases or revenue decreases to result in no net cost for the year.
“This budget requirement is key to reversing record deficits that are passing trillions of dollars in debt to our children and grandchildren,” said Gordon, the dean of Tennessee’s congressional delegation. “American families must live within their budgets, and it’s time for Congress to do the same.”
The new House rule allows members of Congress to object to legislation if it produces a net cost for the year.
The Budget Enforcement Act of 1990 first enacted PAYGO for the 1991-95 budget years. The provision was extended twice in the 1990s and produced balanced budgets from 1998 until the measure expired in 2002.
“PAYGO carries the strong enforcement necessary to get our spending in check and reduce our deficit,” said Gordon. “Deficits are a tax that our children are going to have to pay. The cost of debt service on the borrowing we do today limits future choices on dealing with problems the country will face down the road.”
Gordon said a problem with deficits is that a lot of the borrowing is coming from foreign countries.
According to the Congressional Research Service, the United States’ two top foreign creditors are Japan, which holds $671 billion of U.S. debt, and China, which holds $310 billion. More than $2 trillion of the $8.6 trillion national debt is held by foreign investors.
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