Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to rise today as the author of H.R. 7032, the Congressional Budget Office Data Sharing Act. Mr. Speaker, 50 years ago, almost to the day, Congress passed the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, which created the modern Congressional budget process as well as the Senate and House Budget Committees, and finally, the Congressional Budget Office. With 270 dedicated, nonpartisan staff led by Director Dr. Phillip Swagel, CBO is critical to our work on behalf of the American people. CBO issues hundreds of cost estimates on proposed legislation annually, provides technical assistance in crafting legislation, and keeps the public informed about the costs and impacts of legislation, as well as the overall fiscal health of our Nation. The Budget Committee has direct oversight of CBO, and as the ranking member, helping CBO to do a better job of serving our institution is one of my top priorities. Just a few months ago, the CBO director testified before our committee on the issues that CBO faces when requesting data from executive branch agencies. In many cases, even when agencies want to cooperate with the CBO, they sometimes have concerns about their legal authority to provide data that creates delays. In just one example that Dr.…”