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PAYGO

Date: July 30, 2009
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Government Budget and Spending


PAYGO -- (House of Representatives - July 30, 2009)

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Mr. PETERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today as a proud cosponsor of H.R. 2920, the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2009. This important legislation will establish mandatory pay-as-you-go budget discipline, rein in deficit spending, and reduce the national debt.

In the 1990s, pay-as-you-go budget discipline was enshrined in law, and it led to record budget surpluses. After PAYGO was originally codified in 1990, total Federal spending as a percentage of GDP decreased each year from 1991 through 2000. After Congress let PAYGO expire in 2002, projected surpluses of $5.6 trillion were transformed into record deficits. Passing the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2009 will require Congress to make the tough choices necessary to get unacceptable high budget deficits under control and avoid passing today's costs onto our children, grandchildren, and future generations.

Families make tough budget decisions to live within their means, and the government should be forced to do the same. I urge passage of the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2009.

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