FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 12, 2004
CONTACT: Kevin Schweers
SENATE-APPROVED BUDGET FUNDS AMERICA'S PRIORITIES, REDUCES DEFICIT
WASHINGTON, DC -- U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) welcomed Senate approval today of a 2005 budget plan to defend America, boost the economy and dramatically reduce the federal deficit.
"I am pleased the Senate passed a budget to meet America's most pressing priorities: winning the war on terrorism, defending the homeland and growing the economy to put people back to work," Sen. Hutchison said. "Our plan meets these and other needs, such as improving education and making prescription drugs more available, while cutting the deficit in half over the next three years."
The budget approved for fiscal year (FY) 2005 will:
- Advance the war on terror by providing a $27 billion, or 7%, increase in the defense budget and a $4 billion,
or 15%, boost in homeland security funding;
- Promote economic growth and job creation by maintaining tax relief enacted last year, including relief from
the marriage penalty;
- Make important investments in education to help meet new standards, raising both Title I and special
education programs by $1 billion and early reading efforts by $1.3 billion;
- Reduce the deficit from $477 billion in FY 2004 to $202 billion by FY 2009. As a portion of the country's
gross domestic product, the deficit will decline from 4.2% in FY 2004 to 1.4% by FY 2009; and
- Hold non-defense, non-homeland security spending to less than 1% growth.
The Senator also noted the budget includes stepped-up consideration of legislation to ensure Americans don't pay higher taxes simply for saying "I do." The 2001 tax relief bill included Senator Hutchison's provision to repeal the marriage penalty, and the 2003 tax cuts expedited that relief. Unfortunately, in 2005, married couples would again be penalized unless Congress acts. The Senate-approved budget will make it easier to enact legislation ensuring the 15 percent tax bracket and standard deduction for married couples filing jointly is twice the size as those for single filers – saving taxpayers $16.7 billion from 2005-2009.
"The Senate rightly voted to ensure recently-enacted marriage penalty relief does not disappear," Sen. Hutchison added. "This provision will enable working families to keep more of their hard-earned money and help fuel economic growth and job creation."
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