Adrian Smith
On October 1, absent a last-minute change in momentum, the federal government will shut down. No one wins a government shutdown, least of all the American people. The Biden administration has already announced it will, in the event of a shutdown, close agencies Nebraskans rely on such as FSA, Rural Development, and the Agriculture Research Service. Because the Biden administration appears prepared to make any lapse in appropriations as painful as possible, I would prefer to keep the government open while we fight for fiscal sanity.
In order to prevent a government shutdown, on Friday, September 29, I supported a continuing resolution which would provide an initial round of spending reductions at federal agencies, increase border funding, and address our border crisis while providing more time to finish our work on the annual spending bills which fund the federal government. Unfortunately, this measure failed to pass the House.
As we’ve seen the predictable impact of overspending in recent years, families and small businesses have been forced to sacrifice and make difficult choices to make ends meet. Likewise, our government should manage its budget, spend responsibly, and live within its means. I am proud of the work we have done this year to stop Democrats’ overspending and to begin returning regular order to the budget process. Over the past four years, Democrat House majorities failed to produce a comprehensive budget resolution, much less pass it out of the House Budget Committee. These resolutions, mandated by the Budget Act of 1974, are intended to provide the basis for tax and spending legislation enacted throughout the year. Passing a budget resolution is not easy, and I am grateful for the work of the House Budget Committee, led by Chairman Jodey Arrington, which has passed a resolution providing a path to a balanced budget over 10 years.
Much more work must be done to get real reforms across the finish line, but a balanced budget is a significant step in the right direction. Coming together to agree on spending reforms to achieve the goals established by our budget will be an even more difficult task. If we fail to act, the Medicare Part A trust fund will run out of money in 2028, with the Social Security Trust Funds becoming insolvent five years later, in 2033. Allowing these trust funds to expire, with no additional action from congress, will lead to mandatory benefit cuts for seniors. In order to help ensure bipartisan buy-in for making these hard decisions, this week I cosponsored The Fiscal Commission Act of 2023. This bill would create a bipartisan, 16-member commission consisting of members of Congress and private sector budget experts to recommend policies to reduce the deficit, reduce spending, and improve our nation’s long-term fiscal outlook. To ensure the policies aren’t ignored for political reasons, the bill would require a vote to enact them in the House and Senate, with Senate passage requiring only a 51-vote majority.
Most immediately, our best available way to address wasteful discretionary spending is by considering the annual appropriations bills which fund federal government operations individually, providing members the opportunity to review spending on an agency-by-agency basis. While I would prefer this process was moving more quickly, the House is well ahead of the Democrat-controlled Senate. Prior to this week’s funding deadline, the House passed four of the twelve major appropriations bills. These bills would responsibly fund priorities like agriculture, border security, national defense, and veterans’ benefits. These measures would provide over 70 percent of federally discretionary spending and include robust-yet-responsible investments to help secure the American border. Unfortunately, unlike the House, the full Senate has yet to take action on any of their appropriations bills.
Washington is broken and our problems demand real leadership. It’s important Congress provide certainty, minimize the hardships placed on Americans, and reach an agreement on responsible funding bills that can ultimately be enacted into law. We must work to put our country on a more sustainable fiscal path, and I won’t stop fighting to balance the budget and cut spending while funding key priorities like veterans’ benefits and border security.