Sen. Gregg Introduces Bill to Create Task Force Addressing National Debt
DEBT
New Hampshire Union Leader
Joseph Markman
Boston University Washington News Service
12/09/09
WASHINGTON – Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., along with a bipartisan group of senators, introduced legislation Wednesday that would create a task force to examine ways to reduce the national debt.
As Congress faces a vote on whether to raise the federal debt ceiling above the current $12.1 trillion limit, Gregg and Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., have spearheaded an effort to address the debt, which they say is likely to surpass 100 percent of gross domestic product within a few years, nearing levels not seen since the end of World War II.
“Congress feels entitled to spend with a blank check and little regard for the future of our economic stability,” Gregg said at a press conference on Capitol Hill. “We are swimming in a sea of red ink that will drown any chance our children have for prosperity or even a decent standard of living.”
The bill, co-sponsored by 27 Democrats and Republicans, proposes an 18-member commission of lawmakers and members of the executive branch. To address “unsustainable long-term fiscal imbalance,” the proposal would put “everything on the table” and would require the panel to submit a report after the 2010 elections.
Responding to criticisms that they are seeking to avoid scrutiny before next year’s elections and that they have not set any specific goals, Conrad said he “harbors no illusions” about the political pressures that come with trying to reduce government spending while increasing revenue.
“The regular legislative process is simply not going to get the job done,” Conrad said.
Gregg and Conrad, who hold the two top spots on the Senate Budget Committee, called for “fundamental tax reform” as a path toward easing the deficit, saying the country’s “inefficient tax system” collects only 76 percent of the revenue it is due.
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., among others, has criticized the proposal, calling it too blunt an instrument to deal with what is really a problem of rising health care costs.
Conrad argued that health care reform “will not be enough to solve this problem,” though he and Gregg acknowledged that spending on entitlements – Medicare and Social Security – consume an outsized amount of federal resources.
“We owe it to the Americans who depend on these retirement and health care programs, as well as our children who will pay for them, to fix our broken entitlement system,” Gregg said.
The Bipartisan Task Force for Responsible Fiscal Action Act, which would require a final vote on its recommendations during the “lame-duck” portion of the current Congress, represents an updated version of a bill Gregg and Conrad introduced in 2007.
The Democratic leadership appears split on the issue. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., is reportedly considering the task force and Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., the House Majority Leader, is in favor, Conrad said. But Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has rejected the idea in favor of the existing legislative process.
Gregg countered that “a bipartisan, fast-track process is the best way to arrive at workable solutions.”
“It is no longer enough for Congress to simply talk about reform; it is time for action and leadership,” Gregg said.
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