House GOP Pledge to Limit
Federal Spending
February 13, 2004 - House Republicans are uniting
behind a renewed call to hold the line on federal spending
at or below the levels proposed by President Bush in his FY
2005 budget. The push to control spending is coupled with
a proposal to reform the budget process to create legally
enforceable spending limits.
However, the proposed reforms and the "belt-tightening"
they hope to achieve face uphill battles at the hands of the
House Budget and Appropriations committees as well as the
Senate. House Budget Committee Chair Jim Nussle (R-Iowa) tried
unsuccessfully last year to cut 1 percent from mandatory programs
for "fraud, waste, and abuse."
The current appeals for increased fiscal discipline are notable
because they include moderates as well as conservatives and
they seek to go beyond the president's plan to control domestic
discretionary spending and also target defense and homeland
security and possibly mandatory programs such as Medicare
for cuts as well. House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) has
said, "Everything is on the table."
Both during and after a mandatory caucus meeting Feb. 11,
House Republicans across the political spectrum called for
increased fiscal discipline. Following the session, Rep. Mike
Castle (R-Del.), who co-chairs the moderate Republican Tuesday
group, told reporters, "The consensus is, in my judgment,
that the president's number is a maximum. And perhaps we could
take it below that."
The Bush budget calls for defense spending to increase by
7.1 percent and homeland security by 9.7 percent in FY 2005.
Other domestic discretionary spending is held to a 0.5 percent
increase.
Members of the conservative Republican Study Committee and
the moderate Republican Tuesday Group Feb. 11 unveiled a set
of 12 consensus principles to reform the budget process and
create enforceable spending limits on mandatory and discretionary
spending. Rep. Sue Myrick (R-N.C.), Chairman of the Republican
Study Committee (RSC), stated, "I believe this consensus
document will provide a significant boost to the likelihood
that the House will act this year to fundamentally reform
the budget process and put a lid on spending."
But Republican staff for both the House Budget and Appropriations
committees discounted the prospects for passing the budget
reforms this year. House appropriators also are concerned
about efforts to limit federal spending in an election year.
Information:
Dave Moore, Senior Director
AAMC Government Relations
dbmoore@aamc.org
(202) 828-0525
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