Just like the wall is a foundation to the discussion about immigration reform. You can’t have one without the other. The debt, spending and deficit problems cannot be addressed until the budget process is fixed and happens on time and within a schedule.
I talked to Senator Perdue on Wednesday and he continues to champion this cause.
“Since I first came to the U.S. Senate, many of us have consistently called for fixing this broken funding process. The sad reality is that Congress has only funded the government on time four times in the 45 years since the 1974 Budget Act became law. We are finally taking a major step toward our goal of achieving a politically neutral platform that will fund the government on time every year. I want to thank Senators Enzi and Whitehouse for working in a bipartisan way to get us to this point. Now, it’s absolutely critical that we work to establish funding deadlines with severe consequences if Congress doesn’t get the job done. We’ll never fully fix this broken funding process or the national debt crisis if Congress refuses to hold itself accountable for failure,” said Senator Perdue.
Senator Perdue is an original cosponsor of the Bipartisan Congressional Budget Reform Act of 2019. Over the past four years, Senator Perdue has met with policy experts, outside groups, retired Members of Congress, and his colleagues from both parties and chambers to study best practices and highlight the flaws of the current funding process. In June, he introduced bold changes to fix Congress’ broken funding process and end the use of continuing resolutions.
He’s not the only one working on this. A Senate committee today passed legislation that adopts a biennial budgeting approach championed by U.S. Senators Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., and Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., to fix Washington’s broken budget process.
Today’s passage of the Bipartisan Congressional Budget Reform Act, S.2765, by the Senate Budget Committee includes a biennial budgeting concept similar to the bipartisan budget reform legislation Isakson and Shaheen reintroduced in January.
“I appreciate the Senate Budget Committee’s endorsement of our proposal to reform our budget process and make it more efficient,” said Isakson. “More than ever, we must do all we can to ensure an on-time budget cycle, remove political deadlines, provide meaningful review and certainty to programs funded by the federal government, and focus the attention of Congress on the need for long-term fiscal sustainability.”
“Biennial budgeting would enable Congress to have a more bipartisan, transparent and effective budget process,” said Shaheen. “This type of budgeting works in New Hampshire and it can work for the nation. I’m very pleased to see the Senate Budget Committee approve legislation that mirrors my bill with Senator Isakson to prioritize a two-year budget approach, and I look forward to seeing this proposal move forward in Congress.”
Budget Committee Chairman Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., introduced the Bipartisan Congressional Budget Reform Act passed by the Senate Budget Committee today.
In addition to converting the budget process to a two-year cycle, the legislation introduced by Isakson and Shaheen, the Biennial Budgeting and Appropriations Act, S.284, would also convert the appropriation of federal dollars to a two-year process with one year devoted to appropriations and the other year devoted to oversight of federal programs. Isakson and Shaheen said the measure passed today is an important step toward that goal.
So there are great ideas out there. Let’s start acting like Republicans and be small government and less spending and lower taxes. We can do it.
