Smith: Majority's Budget Short on Solutions
Press Release
Smith: Majority's Budget Short on Solutions
Congressman Adrian Smith (R-NE), a member of the House Budget Committee, today issued the following statement concerning the House majority's FY 2009 federal budget proposal.
"Unfortunately, the majority party insists on a budget which increases spending, raises taxes to historic levels, refuses to fix the AMT - which is going to hit millions of middle-class taxpayers if nothing is done. That they would take such an action during tax season is unconscionable. The budget put forth today does nothing to rescue Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid - it is simply more of the same. Nebraskans - and all Americans - have called for Congress to live up to its fiscal responsibilities, but this budget badly misses the mark," Smith said.
During Budget Committee proceedings last night, Smith joined with his Republican colleagues in offering a number of amendments to help cut spending and attain a measure of fiscal responsibility. Smith introduced an amendment identical to the Legislative Line-Item Veto Act of 2006, which passed the House of Representatives with broad bipartisan support.
Smith's amendment would provide the President and Congress the ability to eliminate funding for individual special projects - referred to as "earmarks" - contained in appropriations bills before becoming law.
Last year's Omnibus Appropriations bill contained 298 earmarks, adding nearly $1 billion to the bill at the last minute, despite the fact none of them was vetted through the committee process or subject to transparency or scrutiny.
Smith's amendment would allow the President to propose to Congress the elimination of wasteful spending added to appropriations and authorizing bills. None of the proposals would take effect without congressional consent.
"Passing a line-item veto will provide a necessary backstop at the end of the earmarking process to keep egregious spending from ever making its way out of Congress and would be the last line of defense against wasteful governmental spending," said Smith.
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