[House Document 111-117]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]




111th Congress, 2d Session - - - - - - - - -  House Document 111-117


 
    ``REDUCE UNNECESSARY SPENDING ACT OF 2010'' LEGISLATIVE PROPOSAL

                               __________

                                MESSAGE

                                  from

                     THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

                              transmitting

THE LEGISLATIVE PROPOSAL ENTITLED, ``REDUCE UNNECESSARY SPENDING ACT OF 
               2010,'' TOGETHER WITH A SECTIONAL ANALYSIS




    May 24, 2010.--Message and accompanying papers referred to the 
      Committees on the Budget and Rules and ordered to be printed
To the Congress of the United States:
    Today, I am pleased to submit to the Congress the enclosed 
legislative proposal, the ``Reduce Unnecessary Spending Act of 
2010,'' along with a section-by-section analysis of the 
legislation.
    This proposal will be another important step in restoring 
fiscal discipline and making sure that Washington spends 
taxpayer dollars responsibly. It will provide a new tool to 
streamline Government programs and operations, cut wasteful 
Government spending, and enhance transparency and 
accountability to the American people. The legislation will 
create an expedited procedure to rescind unnecessary spending 
and to broadly scale back funding levels if warranted. The 
legislation would require the Congress to vote up or down on 
legislation proposed by the President to rescind funding. This 
new, enhanced rescission authority will not only empower the 
President and the Congress to eliminate unnecessary spending, 
but also discourage waste in the first place.
    Now more than ever, it's critical that taxpayer dollars are 
not wasted on programs that are ineffective, duplicative, or 
outdated. In a time when American families and small business 
owners are conscious of every dollar and make sure that they 
manage their budgets wisely, the Federal Government can do no 
less. The American people expect and demand that we spend their 
money with the same discipline. Allowing taxpayer dollars to be 
wasted is both an irresponsible use of taxpayer funds and an 
irresponsible abuse of the public trust.
    Recently, the Congress has taken welcome steps to curb 
wasteful spending. In 2007, when I served in the Senate, a 
bipartisan group worked together to eliminate anonymous 
earmarks and brought new measures of transparency to the 
process so Americans can better follow how their tax dollars 
are being spent. Consequently, we have seen progress--with 
earmarks declining since these reforms were passed, including 
during this past fiscal year.
    In addition, my Administration undertook a line-by-line 
review of the Budget, and put forward approximately $20 billion 
of terminations, reductions, and savings both for Fiscal Year 
2010 and 2011. While recent administrations have seen between 
15 to 20 percent of their proposed discretionary cuts approved 
by the Congress, for FY 2010, we worked with the Congress to 
enact 60 percent of proposed cuts.
    Despite the progress we have made to reduce earmarks and 
other unnecessary spending, there is still more work to be 
done. The legislation I am sending to you today provides an 
important tool. The legislation allows the President to target 
spending policies that do not have a legitimate and worthy 
public purpose by providing the President with an additional 
authority to propose the elimination of wasteful or excessive 
funding. These proposals then receive expedited consideration 
in the Congress and a guaranteed up-or-down vote. This 
legislation would also allow the President to delay funding for 
these projects until the Congress has had the chance to 
consider the changes. In addition, this proposal has been 
crafted to preserve the constitutional balance of power between 
the President and the Congress.
    Overall, the ``Reduce Unnecessary Spending Act of 2010'' 
provides a new way for the Congress and the President to manage 
taxpayer dollars wisely. That is why I urge the prompt and 
favorable consideration of this proposal, and look forward to 
working with the Congress on this matter in the coming weeks.

                                                      Barack Obama.
    The White House, May 24, 2010.
    
    
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