[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 35 (Thursday, March 24, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: March 24, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
   FOLLOWING THE 5-YEAR BUDGET PLAN: AN ECONOMIC STRATEGY THAT WORKS

 Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, at this time last year, Congress 
took a bold step. It broke with the status quo, 1-year-at-a-time budget 
mentality. It mustered great political courage and drew the line on the 
special interests. By passing the President's budget plan, Congress 
rejected the politically expedient in favor of the fiscally 
responsible.
  This was no ordinary budget plan. In fact, it was unprecedented in 
scope; a 5-year plan that will affect spending and revenue decisions 
through fiscal year 1998.
  Tough spending caps were set for each of the 5 years covered by the 
plan. And by the time the 5 years are up, our budget deficit will have 
been reduced by almost $500 billion.
  Now, 1 year later, Congress has another important budget decision to 
make. In essence, it is this: Do we stay the course set out by the 5-
year plan, or do we return to the status quo of annual budgeting?
  Based on the evidence, the answer is clear. We should stay the course 
agreed to by the Congress and the President.
  Since the enactment of the 5-year budget plan, we have seen 
significant improvement in our economy. Consider the economic facts.
  The economy is now expanding at a much faster rate than before 
passage of the budget plan. During the Bush Presidency, the average 
annual rate of growth was a mere 1.5 percent. The rate remained below 2 
percent for the first two quarters of 1993.
  With passage of the budget plan last August, however, the economy 
received a jumpstart. Growth for the final quarter of 1993 was an 
impressive 7.5 percent. For 1994, it is estimated that the rate will 
level off at approximately 3 percent--twice the rate of annual growth 
for the years 1989-92.
  According to the Joint Economic Committee, we are experiencing the 
strongest industrial growth in the past 5 years. Housing starts are at 
their highest level for the same period. There has also been a sharp 
increase in business investment, which, over time, will result in 
further economic gains.
  For Americans concerned about their prospects for employment, the 
declining unemployment rate is encouraging news. In fact, since January 
1993, 1.9 million new private sector jobs have been created. Compare 
this to 1.2 million new private sector jobs over the entire Bush 
Presidency, and the progress on the jobs front is easily seen.
  Most importantly, we have begun to make real progress on controlling 
Federal spending and reducing our massive budget deficit.
  In fiscal year 1994, we cut spending below the previous year's level 
in 500 programs. For fiscal year 1995, the President has proposed 
termination of more than 100 programs and spending reductions for at 
least 200 more.
  These spending cuts are bringing the Federal budget deficit down. At 
the end of fiscal year 1993, just after the 5-year budget plan was 
enacted, the deficit stood at $255 billion. According to an estimate 
done by the Congressional Budget Office, this will fall to $171 billion 
for fiscal year 1995.
  This would be a 33-percent reduction in the deficit in just 2 years--
a clear signal that our current budgetary course is producing the 
results we want.
  Now is no time to rest on our laurels, however. The budget deficit is 
still much too high. Too many Americans are out of work or are unable 
to make in on the wages they bring home. There are obligations that our 
Nation must live up to, such as the promises made to seniors with 
respect to Social Security and Medicare.
  For the foreseeable future, our budgetary challenge is to find a way 
to provide adequate funding for those programs of greatest importance 
to our Nation while reducing the deficit and living within our means.
  This is an extremely tall order. Yet the President's budget proposal 
for fiscal year 1995 points the way toward meeting this challenge.
  The budget resolution we consider today meets the spending caps set 
forth in last year's budget agreement. And within these constraints, 
the President has begun to reorder national spending priorities.
  For example, increases are proposed for Head Start, education reform 
and the hiring of additional police officers. Education and anticrime 
measures are very important to Americans from all walks of life, and 
I'm pleased that the President's proposal recognizes that.
  I do want to emphasize that my spending priorities differ somewhat 
from those of the administration. For instance, I do not agree with the 
proposed cuts in funding and staffing for the Indian Health Service and 
the Veterans Health Administration.
  Our country is poised for national health reform, but the particulars 
of this effort are not yet known. At this point, there is no way to 
determine what resources the IHS and VHA will need in order to adjust 
to a reformed health care system. Meanwhile, many veterans and native 
Americans remain unable to secure the health care they need and deserve 
at the facilities designated by their Government to serve them.
  Health reform offers the IHS and VHA the chance to expand access to 
health care and to improve the quality of that care. Reducing resources 
at this time would effectively take that chance away.
  I also oppose the proposed cuts in funding for two programs that 
provide assistance for low-income Americans. One is an almost 50-
percent reduction in the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program 
[LIHEAP]. This cut would hit hard in my home State of South Dakota, as 
well as in many other regions of the country that have struggled 
through a bitterly cold winter.
  Likewise, I disagree with the proposed 60-percent reduction in 
funding for the section 515 rural rental housing program. This program 
has played a valuable role in South Dakota by providing insured loans 
to finance rental and cooperatively owned housing for low- and middle-
income families, the elderly, and the handicapped.
  While we need to reduce Federal spending, we should not do so on the 
backs of the most vulnerable in our society.
  Mr. President, today marks the real beginning of the tough budget 
debate for fiscal year 1995. This budget resolution lays out the 
parameters of that debate.
  I support this resolution, and I hope it can be passed without delay. 
We must reorder our spending priorities to meet the basic needs of all 
citizens, while still remaining true to the fiscal constraints embodied 
in this resolution. I look forward to working with my colleagues, 
Democrats and Republicans alike, to do just that.

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