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Budget Budgets are about choices. Whether discussing the family budget at the kitchen table, reviewing the office budget at work, or planning the federal budget in the U.S. Congress, we must all deal with prioritizing and allocating our spending. When looking at a new expense, there are three choices. One can spend revenue, unless, of course, the money has already been spent. Or, one can borrow money to finance the new purchase. The third option is readjusting spending priorities, or reducing spending in one area to make room for the new priority. Spending that exceeds revenue results in a deficit. Those deficits must be financed through borrowing. The U.S. federal deficit is projected to reach an unprecedented $1.8 trillion by the time the fiscal year (2009) ends in September. The federal budget runs on a fiscal year that begins October 1st and ends the following September 30th. For too long, Washington has relied on tax increases and endless borrowing to fund the federal agenda. Both Republicans and Democrats are guilty of excessive and unwise deficit spending. However, the past mistakes of both parties are no excuse for continuing this dangerous practice. President Obama is right; it is time to bring change to Washington. We need to cut spending and end the habit of living beyond our means. Washington does not have a revenue problem, it has a spending problem. Unfortunately, Congress has responded to the current economic crisis by spending incredible sums of taxpayer funds bailing out and taking control of failed private businesses. I have opposed each and every bailout, from the bailouts of Bear Stearns and AIG to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to the automakers to the banks through the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). Congress must remember that more government spending is not in and of itself a solution to a slow economy. Congress should instead recognize that individuals and entrepreneurs have always driven growth in our economy. To read more about my positions on the economy and solutions for a positive economic recovery click here. I am a co-sponsor of House Joint Resolution 1, a bill introduced by Representative Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) to propose a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The Constitutional Amendment would prohibit spending for the fiscal year from exceeding total receipts for that fiscal year unless Congress authorizes a specific excess of outlays over receipts. The amendment would also direct the President to submit a balanced budget to Congress annually and would prohibit any bill to increase revenue from becoming law unless approved by a majority of each chamber by roll call vote. American families have to balance their budgets every day and so should Congress. How much is 1,000,000,000,000? The sheer magnitude of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s [CA-8] spending spree is mind boggling. Most of us do not use the number 1,000,000,000,000 in our daily lives, so it is difficult to attach tangible value to the figure. However, as Congress and the Administration continues spending your tax dollars trillions of dollars at a time, it is worthwhile to have a discussion about what these numbers really mean. One of the simplest ways to get an idea of one trillion dollars is to consider the amount in terms of the passage of time. One million seconds is equal to roughly eleven days and twelve hours, and one billion seconds is thirty-two years. One trillion seconds equals thirty-two thousand years. If you spent one million dollars every minute of every day, it would take you nearly two years to spend one trillion dollars. Apparently, that’s not fast enough for Speaker Pelosi. Under her budget, the government plans to spend 6.7 million dollars every minute during the next fiscal year alone. You can continue reading this column here. Fiscal Year 2010 Federal Budget On April 29th, Congress passed Speaker Pelosi’s $3.6 trillion dollar budget for fiscal year 2010. In the House of Representatives, seventeen Democrats joined 176 Republicans opposing this irresponsible budget. In the Senate, three Democrats and forty Republicans voted no. At a time when our nation faces so many challenges, it is disappointing that Democrats in Congress would adopt a budget that spends too much, borrows too much and taxes too much. Instead of making the same tough budget decisions that every family in America is forced to make each month, Speaker Pelosi crafted a partisan budget that projects deficits averaging almost one trillion dollars each year for five years. Every one of those dollars must first be borrowed. By fiscal year 2014, her budget predicts the national debt will exceed seventeen trillion dollars. The budget will also saddle the American people with at least $574 billion in new taxes at a time when so many are already having difficulty making ends meet. Republican Alternative Budget My Republican colleagues and I offered a fiscally responsible alternative budget focused on restoring our economy and creating jobs. First, our budget would have created 2.1 million more jobs than the bloated “government is best” solution adopted by Congressional Democrats. Additionally, our budget would have held federal spending at approximately twenty percent of GDP. The Republican alternative puts America on a path to prosperity by curbing spending, controlling debt, and creating jobs. You can read more about the Republican alternative budget HERE. Now more than ever, we need to implement fiscally responsible policies that curb spending, lower taxes for working families and put our nation on the path to future prosperity. Republicans stand ready to work with the Administration and the Democratic Majority in Congress to craft better solutions to America’s most critical issues. Congressional Budget Office The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) is an agency of Congress. CBO’s mandate is to provide Congress with: You can learn more about the federal budget and CBO’s projections and analysis by visiting the CBO website. The website provides lots of useful information about the federal budget. The following chart shows the federal debt held by the public from 1965 to 2019 as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Related Documents:
Weekly Columns -
Living on Credit: the Federal Budget
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Congressman Geoff Davis : Serving Kentucky's Fourth District
Budget
