Washington, DC– Rep. Pete Olson (R-Sugar Land) issued the following statement regarding his vote to prevent a default on our national debt.  The amended Budget Control Act cuts spending by more than the debt ceiling increase, as well as capping future spending without raising taxes.  The bill also requires Congress to vote on a Balanced Budget Amendment, consistent with the principles in the Cut, Cap and Balance (CCB) Act previously approved by the House. The Budget Control Act passed the House by a vote of 269-161. 

Olson's statement is as follows:

"This historic vote ensures that we cut federal spending as a condition of increasing the debt limit.  This agreement does not increase spending.  The debate has shifted from how much to increase spending to how much to cut. While both sides have spent too much, Democrats in Congress increased the debt limit six times by almost 60% in less than four years.We simply cannot afford this any longer.

"This plan maintains 99% of the principles in the Cut, Cap and Balance Act and moves our nation toward fiscal discipline.  This bill cuts spending, imposes caps on future spending, requires a vote on a Balanced Budget Amendment and does not include job-crushing tax hikes. This is an important step in the right direction in getting our spending under control, and is what I promised the people who elected me that I would do."

The amended Budget Control Act of 2011:

·         CUTS MORE SPENDING THAN IT INCREASES THE DEBT LIMIT: The $917 billion in spending cuts over 10 years exceeds the $900 billion debt hike;

·         INCLUDES NO TAX HIKES: There are no job-crushing tax hikes in this bill. And Republicans will not raise taxes going forward;

·         IMPOSES TOUGH CAPS TO RESTRAIN FUTURE SPENDING: There are more than $21 billion in spending cuts next year alone, and the bill continues to reduce the deficit in the years ahead (by $42 billion in 2013, $59 billion in 2014, $75 billion in 2015, $87 billion in 2016, and so on); and

·         KEEPS THE FOCUS ON SERIOUS SPENDING CUTS & REFORMS: The bill creates a joint House-Senate committee with a goal of enacting at least $1.5 trillion in additional spending cuts over 10 years. The Congress must adopt these cuts by the end of the year or send a Balanced Budget Amendment to the states before the president can request another debt limit increase. If the joint committee does not come up with $1.5 trillion in cuts then corresponding cuts will be made through automatic sequestration. Even if a balanced budget amendment is sent to the states, spending must still be cut. 

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Media Contact: Melissa Kelly
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