Last week, I was pleased as a number of important pieces of legislation made their way through the halls of Congress. Two pieces of legislation that I personally introduced moved through the committee process: the Chesapeake Bay Accountability and Recovery Act (H.R. 739) and the Permanent Electronic Duck Stamp Act (H.R. 1206). After being approved by members of the House Natural Resources Committee on Wednesday, each of these bills is now eligible for consideration by the full House of Representatives.
The Chesapeake Bay Accountability and Recovery Act would ensure increased efficiency and accountability in Bay restoration programs, thereby increasing the effectiveness of efforts to restore this cherished national treasure, which is an economic and cultural backbone for our region. The Permanent Electronic Duck Stamp Act would facilitate easier purchase of federal duck stamps by making them permanently available online. The sale and distribution of these stamps fund wildlife habitat conservation around the country. I was very pleased in the show of support for these bills in Committee, and I am hopeful that they will be considered and passed by the full House very soon.
The House of Representatives passed the Reducing Flight Delays Act (H.R. 1765) on Friday with a bipartisan vote of 361-41. This bill provides the Secretary of Transportation with additional flexibility to transfer funds within the Federal Aviation Administration’s budget in order to reduce the need to furlough air traffic controllers. While I was pleased to support this legislation, I believe it illustrates only a fraction of the overall recklessness of across-the-board spending cuts known as sequestration. While it is absolutely necessary to reduce government spending and change the way Washington operates, sequestration is a haphazard method that fails to protect the necessary functions of government. That is why I have voted to replace the sequester with more targeted, specific spending reductions to rid the government of waste.
As sequestration continues to be implemented, I believe it is critical that our federal agencies have the flexibility to ensure that they are not being forced to use furloughs as a way to cut costs. With that in mind, I joined a bipartisan group of members of the Virginia Congressional Delegation in expressing the need for immediate action to avert furloughs to the Defense Department’s civilian workforce. Furthermore, I appealed to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel requesting that service branch chiefs not be required to institute furloughs.
Moving forward, I will continue to pursue a responsible replacement for these illogical cuts. The main streets of Virginia’s First District are full of ideas to get our economy back on track, and your feedback is so important to me as I serve you. I can be reached by telephone at (202) 225-4261, through my website (www.wittman.house.gov), on Facebook (www.facebook.com/reprobwittman), and via Twitter (www.twitter.com/robwittman).
Congressman Rob Wittman represents the First District of Virginia. He serves on the House Natural Resources Committee and the House Armed Services Committee, where he is the Chairman of the Readiness Subcommittee.
