WASHINGTON – Congressman Rob Wittman (VA-01) released the following statement after voting in favor of H.R. 3, the Spending Cuts to Expired and Unnecessary Programs Act last night:
“For too long unchecked federal spending has been the status quo in Washington, but last night we took a critical first step toward restoring fiscal responsibility,” Wittman said. “This rescissions package cancels $15 billion in leftover, unspent funds, and I want to thank the President for his leadership in getting our nation’s spending problem under control. While not a long term solution to our growing debt and deficit, the House passage of these cuts shows that we are serious about spending taxpayer dollars efficiently. Going forward, I hope to consider future rescissions requests from the Administration and stand ready to tackle the true driver of our nation’s debt—runaway, autopilot spending.”
President Trump requested that Congress rescind more than $15 billion in order to rein in out-of-control Federal spending. This particular package, one that he says is the first of many, targets spending that is unnecessary, unspent, or cannot be used for its original purpose. The President’s proposal to reduce federal spending in the face of our $21 trillion national debt would rescind CHIP funds that are either no longer necessary or simply can’t be spent because the authority to do so has expired. Congressman Wittman has shown his commitment to the CHIP program and to the families who rely on it. Rescinding these unspent, unusable funds will have no impact on the CHIP program but will contribute to reducing our national debt.
Congressman Rob Wittman represents the 1st District of Virginia. He serves on the House Natural Resources Committee and the House Armed Services Committee, where he is the Chairman of the Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee.
