Haley Stevens: “I intend to support this bill because I support a continuation of our efforts to bring Congress under the same laws that…”

“I intend to support this bill because I support a continuation of our efforts to bring Congress under the same laws that apply to the private sector. But I have some serious reservations about this proposal. Contrary to what my friend from Connecticut has just said, I think that the estimates for the cost of this proposal are absurd. Next week we are going to consider a bill to ban unfunded mandates on States and local governments. Today, we are considering a bill to create an unfunded mandate for Congress to be paid for by the taxpayer. The Rules Committee is already in the process of cutting 15 percent from the budgets of every committee in the Senate. We have been asked to cut $200 million from the congressional budget over the next 2 years. But I have not heard anyone suggest where we are going to get the money we need to pay for this bill, in light of these cuts that we already face. And, contrary to what you have just heard and what many people believe, I believe complying with the laws contained in this bill is going to cost the taxpayers a lot of money. If it will not, why are all of the business people of this country complaining about the application of these laws to them now? We have just heard that it is going to cost us $1 million a year. I am making the Senate a commitment as the new Senate Rules Committee chairman, we will keep track of the costs of this bill year by year, and report them to the Senate.”