This Week in Washington – Thursday, November 18, 2010
Today, my House Republican colleagues and I passed an historic ban on earmarks for the next Congress. The election earlier this month provided definitive proof that the American people are tired of the record levels of borrowing and spending in Washington, and they want Congress to change the way it spends the people's money.
While I will not apologize for the worthwhile projects in the Sixth District that I have supported in the past, earmarks have become emblematic of what is wrong with spending in our nation's capital. This earmark ban demonstrates my colleagues and I received the message voters sent on Election Day, and we are committed to ending business as usual.
It is my sincere hope that the President and my friends on the other side of the aisle will follow our lead and institute their own earmark bans. That will go even further toward showing the American people that we all are concerned about spending and we are truly serious about governing responsibly.
This Week
Today, the House approved H.R. 1722, the Telework Enhancement Act, over my disapproval. The bill enables federal employees to telework at least 20 percent of the hours worked in every two administrative work weeks. The bill defines telework as an arrangement under which an employee performs their duties and responsibilities from an approved worksite other than their usual work place.
In the past, I have supported similar legislation. However, the Senate altered this version by removing several of the provisions I favored – such as language that prevented employees who were severely delinquent on their taxes from participating in the program and provisions that would have required agency heads to certify that their teleworking programs would actually save the federal government money. Therefore, I was unable to support the bill in its current form.
Also today, the House did not approve H.R. 6419, the Emergency Unemployment Compensation Continuation Act. The bill would have provided a further extension of the emergency unemployment compensation program (EUC) and 100 percent of the federal funding for the extended benefit (EB) program through March 2011. While I agree we need to help those currently out of work, the bill was not paid for with budget cuts elsewhere and, as a result, it would have added $12 billion to the deficit.
The House will not be in session next week. Have a happy and safe Thanksgiving!
Sincerely,
