Political Quotes

“Article I, section 9 of the Constitution grants Congress the power of the purse. This assigns to Congress the role of final arbiter of the use of public funds. Despite this clear declaration of power, the Office of Management and Budget estimates that agencies collected over $513 billion in fines, fees, penalties, and other offsetting collections and receipts in fiscal year 2017. Allowing agencies to have slush funds outside of the normal appropriations process is a recipe for bad acting. The RSC budget calls for implementing the Agency Accountability Act, which directs that all fines, fees, and settlements go to the Treasury, making them subject to the normal appropriations process. This would end the agencies' ability to operate independently and outside of the oversight of Congress. More importantly, it would allow Congress to fully account for how much money the government actually collects and where that money is coming from. I am also pleased that the RSC budget does what is increasingly becoming an impossible task: it balances the budget, all while prioritizing defense spending to keep this country secure. This budget sets forth the bold ideas necessary to put the country back on a path of fiscal responsibility. The Congressional Budget Office reports that if we stay on the current irresponsible fiscal path we are on, by 2047, in 30 years, our debt to GDP will be 150 percent.…”