[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 35 (Monday, March 27, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E421]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION ON THE BUDGET, FISCAL YEAR 2001

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                            HON. LOIS CAPPS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 23, 2000

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the concurrent resolution 
     (House Concurrent Resolution 290) establishing the 
     congressional budget for the United States Government for 
     fiscal year 2001, revising the congressional budget for the 
     United States Government for fiscal year 2000, and setting 
     forth appropriate budgetary levels for each of fiscal years 
     2002 through 2005:

  Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of a fiscally responsible 
federal budget.
  I have been very consistent in what I believe we should be doing with 
our federal budget and projected surplus.
  First, we need to pay down the $3.7 trillion national debt. Last 
year, we paid $230 billion in interest on the debt--that's almost the 
size of the Defense budget. Families use times of plenty to pay off 
debt first--the government should as well. We owe it to our children to 
get rid of this burden.
  We must shore up Social Security and modernize Medicare. Social 
Security faces a huge challenge with the coming retirement of baby 
boomers and we must prepare for that now. Providing prescription drug 
coverage, and increasing payments to Medicare HMO's and hospitals will 
ensure that central coast seniors have the quality health care they 
deserve.
  We must also make critical investments in education, health care, 
defense, and veteran's programs. Schools on the central coast are 
overcrowded, putting an extra burden on our teachers and potentially 
shortchanging our kids. Millions of Americans lack health insurance and 
this adds to overall health care costs and human misery. Our troops are 
stretched too thin and we have neglected our veterans' needs for far 
too long.
  And, of course, we must enact some commonsense tax reform. Fixing the 
marriage penalty, ending the Social Security earnings limit, lifting 
the estate tax burden from small businesses and family farms--these are 
all reforms we can accomplish this year.
  To meet these goals I will be supporting the alternative budget 
presented by Mr. Spratt. While it does not fully reflect all my goals, 
it comes closest. And it clearly is superior to the leadership plan.
  This mainstream budget puts $364 billion of the non-Social Security 
surplus toward paying down the debt. The leadership bill puts none of 
the non-Social Security surplus into debt reduction and may even begin 
spending the Social Security surplus once again. The mainstream 
proposal will extend Medicare and Social Security solvency by at least 
10 and 15 years, respectively. The leadership bill does not provide the 
necessary safety net for the future generations of seniors.
  The budget I support provides for prescription drug coverage for all 
our seniors. The leadership bill is silent on who is covered. The 
Spratt proposal puts $1 billion more into law enforcement than the 
leadership bill. And this budget allows for responsible increases 
funding for education, science and medical research and development to 
insure that we provide our kids with the all the opportunities they 
deserve. The leadership proposal freezes funding for 5 years for all 
higher education assistance, meaning fewer Pell grants and Head Start 
slots for our kids. Finally, this mainstream budget provides for 
critical funding for energy research and conservation programs. The 
leadership bill, even in these times of high gas prices, actually cuts 
these budgets.
  Simply put, Mr. Chairman, the budget I support allows us to continue 
on a path of fiscal responsibility, while continuing to meet the future 
challenges that face our society.

                          ____________________