Steny Hoyer: “Mr. Chairman, the National Performance Review, which was referred to by the previous speaker, specifically does not do…”

“Mr. Chairman, the National Performance Review, which was referred to by the previous speaker, specifically does not do what he says it does. Yes, they have effectively accomplished the desired effect of reducing the cost of Government while providing quality higher services. The proposed amendment singles out only political appointees. Many of these appointees, by the way, are only mid-level or junior staffers. The National Performance Review plan instead focuses on all employees by removing layers of management. Political appointees, as I said earlier, play a critical role in carrying out policy. The proposed cap would limit political appointees to 2,300. President Clinton has created the National Performance Review to promote Federal Government that works better and costs less. But if you cut the folks committed to that objective, you are going to do less, not cost less. Presidents Reagan and Bush saw an increase of 67,000 in the Federal work force while Clinton, let me indicate to my colleague, under President Bush and President Reagan, 67,000 additional employees. Under President Clinton, 225,000 fewer employees. This small nick is political, not policy. It undermines policy. The last time the levels of Federal employment were this low was during the Kennedy administration. So this is not an issue about reducing numbers of employees.”