I am pleased to report that last week, for the first time in five years, Congress agreed upon a federal budget. The House of Representatives passed the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 by a vote count of 332-94.
Fifth District Virginians know that we need to put an end to the reckless government spending in Washington that has brought us to a $17 trillion debt. Since coming to Congress, addressing the crippling national deficit and debt has been my top priority. While we have successfully implemented some spending reforms, such as eliminating earmarks and reducing spending for two consecutive years for the first time in nearly 60 years, we have not been able to make additional progress on our deficits and debt because of the Senate’s failure to even attempt passing a budget in recent years.
After years of Senate unwillingness to act on budget policy, I am encouraged by the fact that we have stopped the pattern of handing over our congressional budgetary authority to the executive branch and exercised our constitutional duty to establish the spending priorities for our great nation. This budget plan reduces our long-term deficit without raising taxes. We have exchanged one-time cuts for long-term spending reforms that are not only good deficit reduction policy, but will also secure our military readiness by giving our troops the resources they need to defend our nation.
This budget plan is not a solution to our debt crisis, but it is a step in the right direction. I look forward to continuing to fight for true spending reform and for policies that will balance our budget and guarantee a brighter future for all Virginians and Americans.
If you need any additional information, please visit my website at hurt.house.gov or call my Washington office: (202) 225-4711, Charlottesville office: (434) 973-9631, Danville office: (434) 791-2596, or Farmville office: (434) 395-0120.
Robert Hurt represents the Fifth District in Congress.
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