[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 132 (Tuesday, September 16, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5602-S5603]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           SPENDING AND DEBT

  Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, as we consider this continuing resolution to 
fund the Federal Government in fiscal year 2015, which begins October 
1, I rise to voice concern about our Nation's spending and debt. At 
last count our country was more than $17 trillion in debt, and that 
number increases every single day.
  My parents told me you shouldn't just complain, you should have 
solutions, and I am going to talk about two solutions.
  One is the Penny Plan, which would cut 1 cent out of every dollar we 
currently spend and, according to the Congressional Budget Office, 
balance the budget in just 3 years. If we continued it for another 7 
years, we would reduce spending by $7.6 trillion.
  Another solution would be to do biennial budgeting. We obviously 
don't have time to look through the budget--we keep doing continuing 
resolutions and then we do an omnibus bill. We are supposed to do those 
through 12 separate bills--12 separate bills that get debated not just 
in committee but on the floor of the Senate with amendments. It has 
been a long time since we have done that. So biennial budgeting would 
allow us to get into this nerve center of spending and get something 
done.
  For fiscal year 2014, we expect to pay $231 billion in interest on 
the national debt according to the Congressional Budget Office. With 
our pattern of unsustainable spending, in 10 years we could pay close 
to $800 billion in interest. That is not counting the interest rate 
going up. Now, $231 billion this year at 1 percent is about what we are 
paying, but imagine if that went to 5 percent. That would put us over 
$1 trillion. That is what we are talking about spending in this 
continuing resolution, and if we are doing it all on interest, that 
eliminates defense and all the other things we put our money into. That 
is more to our creditors than we currently spend on national defense.
  Our future interest payments would be even higher if interest goes up 
more than CBO has predicted. The interest we pay on our debt doesn't 
buy anything. A large portion of that just pays other countries for 
loaning us money.
  The Federal Government consistently spends billions more than it 
takes in, and the CBO reported in August that if current laws remain 
unchanged, growing budget deficits over the long term will push the 
debt even higher. Yet today we are considering legislation to continue 
discretionary funding on autopilot.
  The continuing resolution funds Federal programs through December 11, 
2014, at the current annual rate of $1.012 trillion. We will not have 
any debate. We will have an up-or-down vote and spend another $1 
trillion. The legislation does nothing to address the CBO projection 
that our ratio of public debt to gross domestic product--that is 
everything our economy earns in the United States--will reach 74 
percent by the end of this fiscal year, twice that of just 7 years ago 
and higher than any year since 1950.
  We are doing nothing to reverse CBO's projection that in 25 years 
Federal debt held by our constituents will exceed 100 percent of gross 
domestic product--again, everything we produce in the United States in 
1 year. The CBO notes that this trend, which I view as perilous, cannot 
be sustained indefinitely.
  I ask my Senate colleagues what would happen if we as individuals 
adopted the same spending habits held by the government. I can tell 
them with little doubt that over the long term we would each face 
bankruptcy, and that is the point. Sometimes it seems we have our heads 
buried in the sand. Are we in denial? Sometimes we act as if there are 
different sets of principles for the Federal budget and the outcome of 
excessive personal spending. But I am here to tell you, the same 
potentially dire consequences face the government that face individuals 
if we do not put our fiscal house in order.
  Our President often frames issues in the context of how it would 
affect his daughters. Similar to the President, at times I am up at 
night with concerns about how our country's fiscal path will affect the 
lives of my children and grandchildren. I worry about how our debt will 
harm families and generations to come.
  Sometimes as lawmakers we seem to act as if this problem is too big 
to solve, but it is not. Understanding how to reach and maintain 
financial health is not rocket science. It merely requires exercising 
common sense and commitment.
  As individuals we learn to live within our means. If we spend too 
much, we tighten our belts and we work hard to ease our financial 
situation. The government should and could do the same. We can't wait 
longer. It is time for us to act.
  I have introduced the Penny Plan as a simple and straightforward way 
to put our country back on the right fiscal path. It reduces 
discretionary and mandatory spending, less net interest payments, by 1 
percent--or 1 penny for every dollar--for each year of 3 years until 
total spending has reached approximately 18 percent of gross domestic 
product. Based on figures from the CBO, reducing spending this way will 
result in a balanced budget within 3 years. Total spending would then 
be capped at 18 percent for subsequent years since that is the historic 
average level of government spending for the past several decades.
  Importantly, the Penny Plan steers us away from some of the 
controversial and political traps we have seen for spending reductions. 
At the onset, it does not identify the specific cuts that are necessary 
to achieve this 1-percent reduction in savings. Instead, such decisions 
are left for us to make. Its beauty is it puts a broad plan into action 
and gives flexibility.
  I have had a lot of grassroots interest in this. I have had a number 
of organizations that have done resolutions. I have a lot of 
individuals who have signed up on my Web site as cosponsors of the 
action that is needed to be taken. I encourage people to go to my Web 
site and become a part of this movement to show there is interest in 
balancing the budget and in paying down the debt.

[[Page S5603]]

  I ask unanimous consent that a copy of one of the resolutions be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

Resolution in Support of the One Percent Spending Reduction Act of 2014

       Whereas, the U.S. National debt currently exceeds $17.5 
     trillion and continues to grow;
       Whereas, the estimated population of the United States is 
     318,360,075, so each citizen's share of this debt is 
     $55,037.88.
       Whereas, the National Debt has continued to increase an 
     average of $2.38 billion per day since September 30, 2012.
       Whereas, the ``One Percent Spending Reduction Act of 2014'' 
     reduces discretionary and mandatory spending (less interest 
     payments) by 1 percent each year for 3 years until total 
     spending has reached approximately 18 percent of gross 
     domestic product (GDP).
       Whereas, the Congressional Budget Office reports that 
     reduced spending in this fashion would result in a balanced 
     budget in FY2017.
       Whereas, total spending would then be capped at 18 percent 
     of GDP for FY2018 and subsequent fiscal years.
       Whereas, over a 10-year budget window, the bill would cut 
     spending by about $7.6 trillion from currently projected 
     levels.
       Whereas, the bill amends the Congressional Budget Act of 
     1974 to make it out of order in both chambers to consider any 
     bill, joint resolution, amendment, or conference report that 
     includes any provision that would cause the most recently 
     reported, current spending limit to be exceeded.
       Whereas, the ``One Percent Spending Reduction Act of 2014'' 
     is also referred to as the Penny Plan.
       Whereas, upon passage by Congress and signature from the 
     President of the United States, the Penny Plan would be 
     effective in FY2015 and each fiscal year thereafter.
       Whereas, the Penny Plan would quickly halt the nation's 
     debt spiral and set our country on a fiscally responsible 
     path.
       Therefore, the Board of Directors of the Petroleum 
     Association of Wyoming supports the One Percent Spending 
     Reduction Act of 2014, on this 20th day, August 2014.

  Mr. ENZI. Another step we can take to stop the autopilot spending 
path we are on, passing the CRs year after year, is to enact my 
Biennial Appropriations Act. The legislation we are considering 
illustrates once again why we need to pass my bill.
  In less than 1 month the new Federal fiscal year begins. Yet once 
again we have not passed a single one of the 12 appropriations bills 
for the 2015 fiscal year which starts October 1. Our answer? Another 
short-term continuing resolution. What will come after that? One big 
omnibus bill put together by a couple people in the backroom and we 
will get to vote yes or no on it.
  That is not responsible spending. We have to be able to look at the 
items in the bill. A short-term continuing resolution is not the way 
the government should operate, nor does it meet the expectations of 
those who sent us to Washington to represent them. It is no wonder our 
approval rating is sinking perpetually lower.
  Congress should debate each individual spending bill. It should vote 
on amendments and it should pass all 12 separate spending bills.
  However, the last time we passed all the appropriations bills 
separately before the start of the fiscal year was 20 years ago, in 
1994. That is a pretty poor record, especially since that is the main 
responsibility we are charged with overseeing spending for the United 
States. We ought to be starting on the spending bills April 15, right 
after the budget is required to be finished--which also doesn't get 
finished by then--and considering each of those until we have 
resolution on each of them. We could easily have that done before 
October 1.
  When we don't follow that regular order, we can't adequately consider 
the detail including a line-by-line look at individual programs and an 
analysis of appropriate funding levels and duplication in government. 
Inevitably, we get the types of agreements reached in January in which 
Congress is given one chance to vote on $1.1 trillion, up or down, with 
no amendments.
  It is time for this chronic and debilitating pattern to stop. We have 
to start legislating and stop deal-making. My biennial appropriations 
bill would allow for each of the appropriations bills to be taken up 
over a 2-year period. That gives us a little more time to do it. It 
would also give the agencies 2 years' worth of time to use that money 
the most efficient way possible, instead of having to worry each year 
and then not receive the money until late.
  The six most controversial bills--the six that are the toughest--we 
take up right after an election. The six that are the easiest we take 
up just before the election. That way we can get through both of them 
in some detail and not have to worry about the election. The Defense 
appropriations bill, however, would be taken up each year. Another one 
of our main charges is to ensure the defense of our country, and this 
would allow us to scrutinize the spending details and eliminate 
duplication and waste there as well.
  Biennial budgeting is an idea both parties have endorsed.
  In 2000, former OMB Director, now-Treasury Secretary, Jack Lew told 
the House Rules Committee that the budget process took so much time 
that there wasn't as much time to devote to making programs better. He 
said: ``I think biennial budgeting, if it is properly designed, could 
very much help alleviate these pressures.''
  I think anybody who observes our appropriations process would agree 
we need to do something different. If we keep on doing what we have 
always been doing, we are going to keep on getting what we have, which 
is an omnibus bill of $1.1 trillion with little scrutiny. We can't keep 
doing that. Let's move our budget and appropriations process into the 
21st century, providing the prudent oversight and judgment of our 
budget and appropriations while at the same time guaranteeing a more 
secure future for the generations to come.
  We need to pass the Penny Plan and biennial budgeting, get our 
spending under control, and change our legislative process to where we 
actually make decisions on how government tax dollars are being spent.
  As I have said before, one of the reasons government expands is we 
have this rule of RIFing people, which is, if someone is the last 
person hired, they are the first person fired.
  Consequently, as soon as someone gets a government job, it is very 
important for them to expand their workload, because if they can expand 
their workload, they can show they need an assistant. Once they have an 
assistant on board, they are not the first one fired. I attribute a lot 
of the reports produced as a means to expand work so somebody has 
something to do so they can get an assistant. We can't keep doing that. 
That leads to duplication.
  I hope we will pay attention to the Penny Plan and the biennial 
budgeting process. I will be giving more details on that as we go 
along.
  I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Vermont.
  Mr. SANDERS. Mr. President, I ask that the order for the quorum call 
be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  (The remarks of Senator Sanders pertaining to the introduction of S. 
2832 are printed in today's Record under ``Statements on Introduced 
Bills and Joint Resolutions.'')
  Mr. SANDERS. Mr. President, thank you very much. With that, I would 
yield the floor and note the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. MURPHY. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms. Heitkamp). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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