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Today, Congressman Bob Latta (R-Bowling Green) voted in favor of H.J.Res. 2, a Balanced Budget Amendment (BBA) to the Constitution, in order to curtail runaway government spending. The Amendment failed to reach the required two-third majority vote after most Democrats voted against it.
 
The Amendment would require that total outlays not exceed total receipts for a given fiscal year, unless there is a three-fifths vote in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. The Amendment does provide for a possible waiver in a time of war.
 
“It’s a concept that families in my district understand — you can’t spend more than you take in,” said Latta. “However, the national debt now exceeds $20 trillion and shows no sign of slowing down. The annual interest on the debt that taxpayers are on the hook for is $300 billion for FY2018 — more than half the cost of the Medicare program. Forty-nine out of fifty states balance their budget every year, and the federal government should be no different. We have a responsibility to future generations not to bury them under mountains of debt because of reckless government spending. For this reason, I voted against the most recent spending bill passed by Congress which didn’t address our growing debt.
 
“It’s disappointing that Democrats would block this important step toward fiscal sanity. A Balanced Budget Amendment would force Washington to make the tough choices when it comes to our spending. Tough choices we desperately need to make before it’s too late.”
 
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