Barr Votes to Make Congress Accountable

No Budget, No Pay Legislation Will Focus Lawmakers’ Minds on “Basic Responsibility of Governing”

January 23, 2013

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Andy Barr today voted in favor of H.R. 325; legislation which withholds the pay of every member of the 113th Congress until the House of Representatives and the Senate pass budget resolutions in compliance with existing federal law.  This measure, which imposes a May 18, 2013 deadline, also suspends the federal debt limit until that date.  President Obama has indicated he will not oppose this measure.

“The Senate’s failure to follow the law and pass a budget for nearly four years constitutes a particularly egregious dereliction of duty,” Rep. Barr said.  “No private citizen could obtain financial assistance without a credible plan for controlling future spending, and Congress shouldn’t, either.

“Getting Congress to focus on our $16.4 trillion national debt crisis may require creating a crisis in the personal budgets of members of Congress,” Barr continued.  “With so many families struggling to make ends meet, it’s only fair that members of Congress forego their pay until Congress does its job and fulfills a basic responsibility of governing.”

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