Question of the Week: Balanced Budget Amendment

These questions are culled from phone calls, letters, faxes and e-mails sent to Rep. Gallegly's Camarillo, Solvang, and Washington offices. Each week Rep. Gallegly adds another question and answer. Please add your comments.

November 18, 2011

Question: Why is the Balanced Budget Amendment important and what will it do?

Answer: This week our national debt reached $15 trillion dollars, which exceeds our current Gross Domestic Product of $14.58 trillion and is 41 percent higher than when President Obama took office. Many economists say the national debt hurts economic growth by diverting resources that could be used by the private sector to expand our economy to pay for past federal spending and accrued interest. Runaway federal spending also threatens the financial solvency of our nation’s seniors and future retirees because we are borrowing money from the Social Security trust fund to finance this spending binge.

The federal government must live within its means and get spending under control. That is why I am an original cosponsor of the bipartisan resolution, H.J.Res. 2, the Balanced Budget Amendment.

This resolution would amend the United States Constitution and require:

• That Congress not spend more than it receives in revenue unless a supermajority of three-fifths of both chambers decides otherwise;
• A three-fifths vote in each chamber to increase the public debt limit; and,
• The President to submit a balanced budget to Congress annually.

On November 18, I voted for the Balanced Budget Amendment. Unfortunately, although a majority of my House colleagues supported the Balanced Budget Amendment by a vote of 261 to 165, the Constitution requires that all amendments receive the support of two-thirds of the Members of the House of Representatives, or 290 votes. Under the Budget Control Act, the Senate is still required to vote on the resolution regardless of whether it passed the House of Representatives.

Please be assured I will continue to work with my colleagues to eliminate wasteful government spending and to balance our nation’s budget.

For more information on my positions on economic issues and jobs, please see my Key Issue: Economy page.

For previous Questions of the Week chronologically and by topic, please see my Questions of the Week page.