This week, House Republicans will continue keeping their pledge to stop the spending binge and reduce the size of government by passing a measure (H.R. 2112) that decreases spending for several government agencies by $7 billion from last year, and represents a savings of $98 billion compared to the President’s request.  According to an Appropriations Committee summary, the measure also fulfills Republicans’ pledge to “root out government waste” and sunset “costly and duplicative programs,” saving taxpayers more than $450 million by eliminating 20 wasteful programs, including:

Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies

• New era/rural technology - $1 M
• Microbiological data program - $4.2 M
• Healthy Food Financing Initiative - $35 M
• Subsidized Guaranteed Farm Loans - $17 M
• Rural Microenterprise Investment Program - $6 M
• 12 Federal Agricultural Research Laboratories at 10 Locations - $38 M

Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies 

• EDA Sustainable Economic Development/Global Climate Change - $16.5 M
• NTIA Public Telecommunications Facilities, Planning and Construction - $ 1M
• NIST Technology Innovation Program - $44.8M
• NIST Baldrige Performance Excellence Program - $9.6M
• NOAA Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning - $1.5M
• DOJ National Drug Intelligence Center - $34M
• DEA Mobile Enforcement Teams Program - $40M
• Community-Based Violence Prevention Initiative - $8.3M
• COPS Technology - $1.2M
• NSF Graduate STEM Fellowships in K-12 Education - $26M
• NSF Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory - $12M
• NSF National STEM Education Distributed Learning - $10M

Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies

• TIGGER Grants (FTA) - $50M
• Sustainable Communities Grants (HUD) - $100M

This week’s funding measure follows on the progress made earlier this year when House Republicans passed legislation that eliminated more than 40 wasteful programs in the Department of Education alone, and cut or eliminated hundreds more (see full list here). 

Republicans are focused on removing barriers to economic growth and private-sector job creation (see: Plan for America’s Job Creators), including the threat of higher taxes stemming from Washington Democrats’ out-of-control spending binge.  A statement signed earlier this year by 150 economists and sent to the White House by House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) reiterated that “to support real economic growth and support the creation of private-sector jobs, immediate action is needed to rein in federal spending.” 

With the debt now topping an astronomical $15 trillion, it is critical for Democrats to stop insisting on more ‘failed’ stimulus spending and start working with Republicans on solutions that will put America on a more sustainable fiscal path.  A good first step would be passing the House’s pro-growth Path to Prosperity budget, and supporting the Balanced Budget Amendment the House will pass this week.  If Senate Democrats continue blocking the House-passed budget, they owe it to Americans to put forth a plan of their own.  They have, after all, had more than 900 days to come up with one.  “We can’t wait” to hear what they have to offer.