Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I rise today in support of the Safeguarding Disaster Funding Act of 2011, which I am introducing along with Senator Brown from Massachusetts. This legislation would amend the Congressional Budget Act and the Budget Control Act to require the President to provide a more comprehensive view of disaster funding in his annual budget request. Our bill would ensure that the true cost of disaster assistance is reflected in the President's budget, by requiring that Presidents' annual budget requests for disaster programs include funding levels equal to the average amount provided annually over the previous ten years, excluding the highest and lowest years, to account for years with unusually high or low disaster activity. As disaster funding is already considered ``no-year'' money, unused monies would carry over to support years where additional funds are required. The status quo of Congress providing emergency appropriations to support these efforts, rather than including reasonable estimates, based on past disaster activity trends, is fiscally irresponsible. We should be working with the Administration to fund the necessary and appropriate activities of the Federal government, including disaster assistance. Responsible budgeting for disasters is the right thing to do for the victims of devastation, as the vivid images of the damage from Hurricane Irene have reminded us.…”