Capitol Notebook: A Column By U.S. Congressman Pat Tiberi (R-OH-12)
While much has been made about the recent budget agreement that was passed by Congress and signed into law by the president, what isn’t being talked about is the fact that it cuts spending for the fourth year in a row. It’s not that we spent less than we thought we would, it’s that we are actually spending less money than we had the previous year, four years in a row. This is the first time that’s happened since the Korean War. Think about that – the last time spending was cut four years in a row, the price of a gallon of milk was 94 cents and a stamp cost three cents. It’s been a long time, yet we’ve done it. In fact, discretionary spending, the year-to-year spending appropriated by Congress, is at its lowest point since 2009. The budget we just passed actually spends less in discretionary funds than the previous two Republican budgets which were hailed as “ultra” conservative! With divided government, the fact that we’ve managed to reduce spending, let alone four years in a row, is astounding. Could we reduce spending even more? Absolutely. We shouldn’t stop here. But House Republicans have changed the discussion while President Obama continues to talk about growing government, we continue to talk about ways to reduce spending. That’s a step in the right direction.
There’s certainly more work to be done. However, some conservatives aren’t acknowledging what has been accomplished in the few short years since we have taken the majority in the House of Representatives. When Republicans regained the majority in January 2011 in the House, the Democrats, with control of the House, the Senate, and the White House were in the midst of a spending spree. However, with Republicans at the helm in the House we’ve been able to fundamentally change the trajectory of spending in Washington, putting us on course to a more secure future.
Critics say that the budget we just passed is insufficient because it does away with the spending cuts from the sequester. That’s not true. It replaces 30 percent of the sequester with targeted cuts and reform to mandatory spending programs that actually reduce our spending more than the sequester did. The budget does this by addressing the true driver of our debt – mandatory spending. Mandatory spending is funding for programs that are on “automatic pilot” and increase without Congressional approval, like Social Security and Medicare, and these programs make up 60 percent of our budget. We can’t begin to fundamentally change how the nation spends its money without tackling mandatory spending reform, and this budget does just that. One change to mandatory spending is that federal employees hired after January 1, 2014 will have to contribute more to their retirement, which means less money coming out of taxpayers’ pockets. Additionally, private companies must now cover more of the cost of guaranteeing their pension benefits, saving taxpayers $7.9 billion. These are just a few of the changes included in this budget, and while they are a drop in the bucket toward the type of reform that’s needed, it’s a step in the right direction. If you would have asked me four years ago if we would have been able to reduce discretionary spending and mandatory spending with a Democrat president and a Democrat Senate, I would have said no. Given Democrats’ track record on increasing government spending, getting them to agree to spending cuts and mandatory program reforms is an accomplishment.
These are real wins and don’t even take in to account other conservative priorities that were included in the agreement, like reducing regulatory burdens and strengthening national security. With divided government, in order to keep the government open and operating we must have a funding measure that can pass both chambers of Congress. This budget was far from perfect. If it were up to me, the budget would be much different. But in a constitutional republic, it takes the agreement of the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the president to pass laws. We shouldn’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. We should acknowledge the budget for what it is – not ideal, but a governing document that pushes us further towards our conservative ideals of less government, less spending, less debt, and more freedom.
U.S. Congressman Pat Tiberi represents the 12th Congressional District of Ohio. The 12th Congressional District is made up of Delaware, Licking and Morrow Counties and portions of Franklin, Marion, Morrow, Muskingum, and Richland Counties.
About Guest Columnist
