[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 72 (Thursday, May 26, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Page S6053]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. BROWNBACK (for himself, Mr. Alexander, Mr. Allard, Mr. 
        Bunning, Mr. Chambliss, Mr. Coburn, Mr. Cornyn, Mr. Craig, Mr. 
        Crapo, Mr. DeMint, Mr. Ensign, Mr. Enzi, Mr. Graham, Mrs. 
        Hutchison, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. Isakson, Mr. McCain, Mr. Santorum, 
        Mr. Sessions, Mr. Sununu, Mr. Talent and Mr. Thune):
  S. 1155. A bill to establish a commission to conduct a comprehensive 
review of Federal agencies and programs and to recommend the 
elimination or realignment of duplicative, wasteful, or outdated 
functions, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Homeland 
Security and Governmental Affairs.
  Mr. BROWNBACK. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the 
Commission on the Accountability and Review of Federal Agencies, CARFA, 
Act with over 20 original cosponsors.
  This is an important measure that I have been developing and 
advocating over the past few years. CARFA's premise is simple: Members 
of Congress need a tool that will help them use taxpayer dollars more 
efficiently.
  Members of Congress need a tool like CARFA because the special 
interest in keeping a program alive is almost always more powerful than 
the general interest to realign or even end a Federal program.
  A good example of this is tobacco. While there is a general interest 
in discouraging smoking--and while we spend many taxpayer dollars to 
this end--there is also strong special interest pressure to keep 
taxpayer tobacco subsidies alive. Thus, the Federal Government both 
subsidizes and discourages tobacco.
  CARFA is the tool that would give members a chance to advance the 
general interest. CARFA would take all Federal Government agencies and 
programs--both discretionary and entitlement--and put them under the 
review of a bipartisan commission. Members of the commission would be 
appointed by both majority and minority leaders in both House of 
Congress and by the President.
  The commission would review Federal agencies and programs in order to 
present draft legislation to the Congress that would realign or 
eliminate duplicative, wasteful, inefficient, outdated, irrelevant, or 
failed agencies and programs.
  Each House of Congress would get one vote on the draft legislation--
up or down--without amendment.
  CARFA would create a new approach to increase the efficiency of the 
Federal Government by giving the general interest a stronger voice in 
the system. For example, there might be a program that is important to 
my home State of Kansas that would be cut by the proposed legislation, 
but I only get one vote and there are a variety of other programs that 
I really do think need to be eliminated.
  Since I only have one vote, I can justify voting for the measure when 
I go back home by showing to my constituents that there were a number 
of other programs that needed to be realigned or cut. Thus, CARFA makes 
the overall goal of balancing the Federal budget more achievable.
  We need CARFA now more than ever. The Federal Government spends 
$2,292,000,000 per year on discretionary and mandatory spending. That 
is a lot of money. My Kansas constituents often say: ``I don't mind 
paying my taxes, but make sure my hard-earned money is well spent.'' At 
a time when Federal spending is at an all time high, topping $20,000 
per household, we owe our constituents the accountability that would 
result from CARFA.
  Last year, we had a bipartisan hearing on CARFA, at which all 
witnesses supported the CARFA concept. We have incorporated some of the 
suggestions made at that hearing, and I believe this year's version of 
CARFA is even better.
  I am pleased that the Senate is already on record supporting the 
CARFA concept through Section 502 of this year's budget resolution, and 
it is my hope that we will be able to work with leadership to see CARFA 
become a reality this year.
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