Young Votes in Favor of Balanced Budget Amendment

Press Release

Rep. Todd Young (R-IN9) voted in favor of H.J. Res 2, a Balanced Budget Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, on Friday as it failed passing the House by a 165-261 vote (a two-thirds majority was required).

"The constituents I talk to in Indiana are overwhelmingly in support of a Balanced Budget Amendment," said Young. "Our Hoosier commonsense tells us that you can't last very long if you continually spend more than you make. As the economy stalls, they are adjusting their budgets to fall in line with their income. They are making tough decisions about their finances so that they don't go bankrupt. Washington should operate the same way, and I'm disappointed that today's vote means they won't be required to do so."

Young also noted that the timing of today's vote highlights the necessity of such a measure.

"I think it's fitting that we took this vote the same week that our national debt soared past $15 trillion," said Young. "Borrowing now covers more than 40% of what we spend, which means we're not climbing out of that hole unless we force Washington to be more responsible. Until we start to address our fiscal problem, our job creation problem isn't likely to turn around, either. This amendment is exactly what we need to put our country back on the right track."

As part of the Budget Control Act, the debt limit package approved in early August, both the House and Senate were required to vote on a Balanced Budget Amendment by the end of the year. In 1995, an amendment nearly identical to the one voted on today passed the House, but failed by a single vote in the Senate.

Earlier this morning Young posted a video to YouTube in which he explains to constituents why he is supportive of this measure. It can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrKyBsOWrw8

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