I voted Yes on H.R. 325, the No Budget, No Pay Act of 2013. 

This legislation would temporarily suspend the statutory debt limit until May 19, 2013, which would allow the Treasury Department to meet its obligations on interest payments, Social Security benefits and military pay.

Importantly, this legislation also adopts a “no budget, no pay” principle by withholding pay for members of the House and Senate if either body fails to approve an annual budget resolution for Fiscal Year 2014 by April 15, 2013.  Adopting a budget is among the most basic responsibilities of Congress to set priorities for the nation—a responsibility the Senate has unfortunately failed to meet since 2009.  Members of Congress should not be paid if they fail to do their job.  That is how it works in business and I support that principle.

The No Budget, No Pay Act received my support because although we cannot jeopardize the full faith and credit of the United States, our government has a responsibility to approve annual budget resolutions which would help address deficits and out of control spending.  This bill would increase the likelihood that the Senate follows the House’s lead in regularly considering annual budget resolutions in an open debate.

H.R. 325 was approved by a vote of 285 – 144.