[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 15]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 21094]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     CURBING CONGRESSIONAL BENEFITS

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. MIKE COFFMAN

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, December 15, 2011

  Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing two more 
pieces of legislation to curb the benefits currently available to 
Members of Congress.
  The first ends the automatic pay increase privilege for Members of 
Congress. In 1989, Congress established the current formula for 
automatic annual salary adjustments under the Ethics Reform Act. The 
formula is based on the Employment Cost Index which tracks changes in 
private sector wages and salaries. Unless Congress passes a law 
blocking it, the adjustment goes into effect automatically.
  The current system is set up to allow Members of Congress to receive 
pay raises without having to cast recorded votes for them and that is 
just wrong. Requiring recorded votes on pay increases will not only 
make the actions of Congress more transparent but it is another step 
that will make Congress more accountable to the citizens who elect 
them.
  Another benefit available to Members is lifetime eligibility for 
service in Congress. A lifetime of service in Congress is, I believe, 
far too insulating and privileged to assure us that our Representatives 
are firmly empathetic to and aligned with the needs of the American 
people. But given the significance of seniority in Congress, States 
that encourage their members to pledge to limit their terms voluntarily 
are at a disadvantage with States that don't. I believe that the 
solution is to make term limits mandatory by passing a constitutional 
amendment that would limit the terms of Members of Congress so that 
everyone will be subject to the same requirement. I am introducing a 
proposal to do this, and limit House and Senate Member terms to 12 
years.
  These bills are the latest proposals of my ongoing efforts to reform 
Congress. In addition to chairing the Congressional Balanced Budget 
Amendment Caucus, and so working to take away the unlimited ability of 
Congress to borrow money, I introduced House Resolution 270 in January, 
which would cut Congressional pay by 10 percent as well as reduce 
Congressional office budgets. In September, I introduced House 
Resolution 2913, which would terminate the pension plan available to 
members of Congress. All of my reforms are about changing the culture 
of Washington, D.C. to make government work for the American people.
  I urge the passage of these bills.

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