Washington, DC (May 23) - The out-of-control spending that marked the second session of the 106th Congress threatens to squander projected budget surpluses and send the federal government hurtling back to the dark ages of budget deficits, according to a Congressional voting analysis released today by Taxpayers for Common Sense Action (TCS Action), a national budget watchdog group.
"Congress has two distinct choices," said Jill Lancelot, Legislative Director for TCS Action, "It can either continue down the usual path of wasteful spending, banking on surpluses that may never appear, or it can get serious about balancing its books."
The Common Sense Taxpayer Scorecard, which is available online at www.taxpayer.net, evaluates dozens of votes aimed at promoting sound fiscal policy, and cutting wasteful government spending and subsidies. The votes cover a broad variety of categories, including agriculture, budget, international, military, public lands, public works, and taxes.
Congress exceeded spending limits mandated by the 1997 Balanced Budget Act by $50 billion in the FY 2000 budget, according to the group. For FY 2001, lawmakers have spent $100 billion dollars more than is allowed by the law.
The report also contends that lawmakers used budget gimmickry to evade the caps, often slipping non-essential spending into emergency spending bills. In one example, Congress approved $45 million for a personal jet for the Coast Guard' s Commandant. Another tactic cited by the group was to hide the full cost of proposals by moving the cost beyond the 10-year budget horizon.
"The budget surplus projections that are being used to justify this spending aren't set in stone," continued Lancelot, "A minor decrease in economic growth or increase in government spending will have a major impact on the surplus projections that some lawmakers have counted on to bankroll their reckless spending."
TCS Action doesn't assign subjective weights to votes in secret. Instead, the organization carefully selects votes that have a significant impact on the federal taxpayers. Also, in an effort to make the vote selection process transparent, TCS Action describes the votes extensively and weighs each vote equally.
TCS Action's scorecard recognizes 57 Senators and Members of Congress as Treasury Guardians, a special distinction awarded to lawmakers who scored in the top 10% of their respective chambers by casting fiscally responsible votes.
"There are some exceptional Senators and Members of Congress from both political parties looking out for the American taxpayer's money, " concluded Lancelot. "Unfortunately, politics too often trumped common sense when it came to spending tax dollars."
For more information, please contact Keith Ashdown at (202) 546-8500 ext.110, or by email.
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