[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 115 (Tuesday, July 28, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2027]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    GENERAL LEAVE STATEMENT ON H.R. 2920--CONSIDERED 7/22/2009 THE 
                  STATUTORY PAY-AS-YOU-GO ACT OF 2009

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                               SPEECH OF

                          HON. GARY C. PETERS

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 22, 2009

  Mr. PETERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today as a proud co-sponsor of H.R. 
2920, the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2009. This important 
legislation will establish mandatory ``pay-as-you-go'' budget 
discipline, rein in deficit spending, and reduce the national debt.
  This bill requires Congress to offset the cost of increases in most 
mandatory spending or tax cuts with savings elsewhere in the budget to 
avoid increasing the national budget deficit. If the net effect of 
legislation enacted during a session of Congress increases the deficit, 
there would be an across-the-board reduction in certain mandatory 
programs. This fiscally responsible legislation includes carefully 
crafted, necessary provisions allowing Congress to take emergency 
action exempt from PAYGO rules in response to extreme circumstances 
such as war, economic crises, or other emergencies.
  Establishing a pay-as-you-go law is critical to restoring fiscal 
responsibility and balanced budgets to Washington. We need targeted, 
responsible investments to get our economy back on track, but Congress 
must be required to determine how it will pay for new proposals. Pay-
as-you-go legislation will ensure that Congress determines how to pay 
for new initiatives by searching out and cutting waste throughout the 
budget.
  In the 1990s, pay-as-you-go budget discipline was enshrined in law 
and it led to record budget surpluses. After PAYGO was originally 
codified in 1990, total federal spending as a percentage of GDP 
decreased each year from 1991 through 2000. After Congress let PAYGO 
expire in 2002, projected surpluses of $5.6 trillion were transformed 
into record deficits. Passing the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2009 
will require Congress to make the tough choices necessary to get 
unacceptably high budget deficits under control and avoid passing 
today's costs onto our children, grandchildren, and future generations.
  I am proud to support the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2009 because 
it is grounded in fiscal discipline and responsibility. Families make 
tough budget choices to live within their means, and the government 
should be forced to do the same thing. I urge passage of the Statutory 
Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2009.

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