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6/12/2010
Rep. Petri: Breakdown of the Budget Process
How excessive is congressional spending right now? Think of the video we've all seen of the oil spewing out of BP's pipe at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico. It's that out of control.
Case in point: The breakdown of the budget process in Congress.
President Obama's 2011 budget proposal forecasts a record deficit of $1.6 trillion, or 10.6% of gross domestic product - the highest level since World War II. The President's plan is only a proposal, however, as Congress is supposed to produce the actual budget.
Under the Budget Reform Act of 1974, around April of each year the House and Senate are each supposed to approve separate budget resolutions which are then negotiated into a single outline which tells the various congressional committees how much they are allowed to spend. On four occasions over the years, the House and Senate have failed to negotiate agreements successfully, but we can say this much: Every year since the 1974 budget reforms, the House has managed to approve its own outline for the budget.
Until this year, that is.
What's the problem? In addition to outlining spending for the year ahead, budget resolutions include plans for multiple years, laying out anticipated spending and revenues, and calculating anticipated deficits and surpluses.
If the House were to pass a 2011 budget resolution, it would establish as official House policy that we will run enormous deficits for as far as the eye can see. But several Democrats in the House are reluctant to associate themselves with such a document - which is understandable since such a document is bound to be ridiculously irresponsible.
Of course, it's theoretically possible that the current House majority could propose a budget resolution mapping a path back to balanced budgets - but no. Substantial numbers of House Democrats think we should be spending more than currently planned in order to fund government jobs and stimulate the economy. With members of her own party pulling in opposite directions, Speaker Pelosi appears to have given up on finding a majority that would vote in favor of any official budget, whether big spending or moderate.
Instead, the House seems likely to approve budget targets for next year alone, allowing the majority to avoid admitting and addressing how out of control our financial situation has become for the indefinite future. Meanwhile, the total federal debt will top $13.6 trillion this year and climb to an estimated $19.6 trillion by 2015. Put another way, the debt currently equals 93 percent of our gross domestic product, and is estimated to equal 102 percent in five years.
Rep. Tom Petri is a Republican and represents the citizens of Wisconsin’s 6th Congressional District.
COMMENTS
Words of Wisdom !
Rich (Mon Jun 14 11:45:25 2010)
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