Politico - Building Collaboration in House

Statement

There is no doubt that we need to get our financial house in order. With mounting, trillion-dollar deficits; a skyrocketing $13.8 trillion debt, and hemorrhaging entitlement programs, Congress has its work cut out for it.

Facing this firestorm, the Appropriations Committee will be front and center. The committee must immediately end earmarks, scale back discretionary spending, recoup unspent funds and rein in out-of-control Washington bureaucrats. All that is clear.

But beyond these initial steps, the Appropriations Committee must chart a new course that rebuilds the American people's trust in their government. The committee must evolve to meet this challenge and overcome the spending culture of Washington.

It starts with a plan not just for the next six months, but for years to come. Then taxpayers can hold us accountable for delivering on the promise of a more effective, yet more limited and sustainable government.

A Plan of Collaboration for Real Results

It is high time we forge a new era of committee cooperation, openness public participation and prioritization.

The future of the Appropriations Committee should not be built on favoritism and exclusivity, but on profound and genuine collaboration. I'm convinced, now more than ever, that the size of the federal government and the scope of our problems require an entirely new level of robust partnership in the way the Congress authorizes, funds and oversees programs.

For years, committee turf battles and pointless infighting hindered aggressive oversight and real reform with too much focus on which committee gains the limelight, or was first out of the gate. All committees must now to come together to rein in spending and implement long overdue reforms.

The authorizing committees must be our willing partners in uncovering waste to help us determine proper funding levels. Similarly, when the Appropriations Committee discovers structural or management failures within federal agencies, the authorizing committees should address these issues and restructure as necessary.
To that end, inviting authorizers to our planning sessions and conducting joint oversight hearings should become fundamental parts of how we conduct our oversight duties.

In short, no more surprises and no more excuses.

Procedures must be visible and allow all members time to scrutinize the Appropriations Committee's work, participate in bill formulation from beginning to end, prepare amendments where necessary and readily monitor the development of these bills. Personal agendas must be set aside so that members do not hijack the appropriations process.

We must appoint staff dedicated to tirelessly scrutinizing President Barack Obama's budgets for waste and overspending. We should also beef up our own internal investigative staff. And, we must make sure that our first-term members join the conversation, so they can fully participate.

These are the types of tools I will use to transform the committee into a more active mechanism of congressional oversight and for furthering our shared conservative values.

Rebuilding trust through outreach

We must also rebuild this trust outside Congress -- particularly in the way we shepherd taxpayer dollars. By building coalitions, working with outside investigators and inviting cost-cutting ideas from the public, we can incorporate ideas from far beyond the Beltway. With a dedicated coalitions coordinator on staff, the Appropriations Committee can provide constant outreach to good government groups to improve our product and bring about the reforms that Americans are clamoring for. With blogs, YouTube, Facebook or other online forums, the Appropriations Committee can proactively convey its stewardship directly to the people.

A return to basic principles

Finally, we must return to our basic principles and concentrate our work on producing lean appropriations bills that not only protect the taxpayers' precious dollars, but also prevent the persistent waste, fraud and abuse in our government.

The Appropriations Committee has all too often bit off more than it could chew, leading to omnibus finales and failed endings. This year, we're on track for yet another haphazard end-game because cutting spending and uncovering waste were never favored by the 111th Congress.

Instead, too many special interests have been appeased and too little work has been accomplished.

By setting priorities and rooting out wasteful programs and job-killing policies, we can achieve results for the American people.

Winning back trust within and outside the Congress won't happen overnight. But in can be accomplished with steady, proven leadership. My hope is that with renewed collaboration, openness, and honest prioritization, we will not only establish this elusive trust, but also overcome the all-too-real fiscal challenges now gripping our great nation.

Rep. Hal Rogers (R-Ky.) serves as the ranking member on the Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee.

© 2010 Capitol News Company, LLC

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