FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, March 11, 2010

Chambliss, Isakson Co-Sponsor Legislation to Rein in Government Spending

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., and Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., today announced that they are co-sponsoring legislation to rein in deficit spending. The legislation, the Honest Expenditure Limitation Program (HELP) Act of 2010, would freeze discretionary spending at fiscal year 2008 levels for all “non-security” appropriations.

“The American people continue to demand that Congress address the government’s rising deficit,” said Chambliss. “Congress should not continue on the path of saddling our children and grandchildren with insurmountable debt – it’s just wrong. This legislation represents a step in the right direction toward getting government spending to a level that is sustainable.”

“Balancing the federal budget is an obligation that those of us in Washington owe to future generations of Americans, and this legislation takes immediate steps to stop out-of-control federal spending,” said Isakson. “Congress continues to spend money at an alarming and unsustainable rate, and it is a recipe for disaster and failure.”

Specifically, the proposal would freeze discretionary spending at fiscal year 2008 levels for all appropriations, except those for the Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, Department of State, Veterans Administration, and national security functions of the Department of Energy. The spending freeze is to be phased in over five years from fiscal year 2011 to fiscal year 2015, reducing the cap by an equal percentage each year.

Using the Office of Management and Budget’s own methodology for estimating future spending levels, this proposal would save $634 billion more than President Obama’s proposed spending freeze, and would save almost $900 billion over the next 10 years, compared with staying the present course.

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