Congressman Mike Ross, Fourth Congressional District of Arkansas



Volume 5, Issue 7,
February 10, 2005
Weekly Newsletter



 



 
MIKE'S WEEKLY MESSAGE


 
Ross Comments on President Bush’s 2006 Budget Proposal


 
This week, the President released his annual budget to the United States Congress and to the American people. 

When the President released his budget Monday, he was quoted as saying, “all budgets have got to be based on priorities.” I agree with the President that the budget we implement must be priority-driven and fiscally responsible. But I have to question his priorities when his budget calls for the elimination of 150 government programs while at the same time, requests that Congress make his tax cuts permanent. 

Many of the programs the President wants to eliminate in his budget are vital to Arkansas’s working families. Under the President’s budget, federal payments to crop and dairy producers would be slashed by $587 million next year and $5.7 billion over the next decade!  And despite the fact that there are 45 million Americans today who lack access to affordable health care, the President wants to cut $60 billion from Medicaid, which millions of elderly and disabled Americans, including 717,000 Arkansans, depend on to provide critical health care services.  

As our nation welcomes home more veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan, the President’s budget raises veterans’ health care costs by slashing $2 billion from the services veterans’ organizations estimate they need.  The President’s budget also imposes new co-payments on prescription drugs and enrollment fees that will ultimately cost veterans hundreds of millions of dollars.  This is no way to thank our brave men and women in uniform for all the sacrifices they have made.  

As a Member of the conservative Blue Dog Coalition that promotes fiscal discipline within our nation’s government, I am glad the President has set a goal of cutting the deficit in half by 2009. However, I have to wonder how he plans to accomplish this. While he tightens the belt of domestic spending by making massive cuts to numerous programs, his budget fails to factor in inevitable upcoming costs including the cost of his expensive Social Security plan and his impending funding requests for Iraq and Afghanistan. In fact, the President is expected to ask Congress for an additional $80 billion in funding for Iraq and Afghanistan this month, but his budget does not take this into account. 

I believe if Congress employed fiscally-responsible principles such as requiring that every bill contain an estimated cost before a vote is allowed and requiring Congress to pass a balanced budget every year, Congress and America would be much better off. 

Finally, the President’s budget calls for making his tax cuts permanent.  I have supported tax cuts in the past, when our country was not deficit spending and we were not at war. In fact, if the President were to repeal the tax cuts he gives to the top one percent of income earners, the savings generated by repealing those tax cuts would essentially pay to fix Social Security! 

But for the President to recommend making his tax cuts permanent on the backs of our hardworking families, many of whom heavily depend on programs President Bush’s budget eliminates, is fiscally and morally wrong. As Congress debates the budget for the upcoming fiscal year, I will fight to retain the programs critical to the people of Arkansas.



 



 
Ross Stands Up for America’s Rural Farmers in Criticizing Proposed Agriculture Cuts
Joins Colleagues on House Agriculture Committee to Stress Need to Reinstate Bush Budget Cuts



 
(WASHINGTON D.C.) – Fourth District Rep. Mike Ross (D-Ark.) joined Democratic Members of the House Agriculture Committee Thursday at a press conference on Capitol Hill, where they stood together to denounce President Bush’s budget proposal that calls for substantial funding cuts to America’s farm families.  Under President Bush’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2006, funding for agriculture would be slashed by $5.7 billion over the next ten years, including $587 million for fiscal year 2006. 

“I stand here before you today to serve as a voice for America’s rural farm families,” said Ross. “In 2002 when we passed the Farm Bill, the President, along with Congress, made a deal with America’s farmers that when commodity prices went down, the money would be available to help producers and when prices were high, the money would not be spent. That is the premise of the Farm Bill, and so far, it’s working, as evidenced by the fact that the farm program has cost $15 billion less than projections. The President’s new budget goes back on his word and attempts to cut the deficit on the backs of America’s farm families. 

“Furthermore, the President is expected to ask Congress for an additional $80 billion in funding for Iraq and Afghanistan next week. I have always supported additional funding needed to help our brave men and women in uniform carry-out their mission, and this time will be no exception. But part of his funding request is expected to include a $780 million buyout for drug farmers in Afghanistan! For the President to provide support to help Afghan farmers but not our farmers here at home is wrong.  

“Our farm families pride themselves in providing our nation and much of the world with a safe, reliable, and abundant supply of food and fiber. Because of the impact farmers feel on circumstances beyond their control such as market prices, skyrocketing energy costs, and devastating weather conditions, a safety net is still necessary. Foreign competitors are already outspending us six-to-one when it comes to assistance for farmers, and the President’s budget cuts to agriculture will place our farm families at an even greater disadvantage.  

“As a Member of the conservative Blue Dog Coalition that promotes fiscal discipline within our nation’s government, I am glad the President has set a goal of cutting the deficit in half by 2009. However, to cut our deficit on the backs of our hardworking farm families is morally wrong, and I will not accept it.”


 




 
Ross Highlights Need to Increase Domestic Energy Production; Expresses Concern for Power Marketing Administrations
Urges Commerce Secretary Bodman to Support More Affordable and Alternative Energy Sources During House Energy And Commerce Committee Meeting Wednesday



 
(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – Citing the rising cost of gasoline and the growing volatility for increasing domestic energy production, Fourth District Rep. Mike Ross stressed the need to Commerce Secretary Bodman to increase domestic energy production during Wednesday’s House Energy and Commerce Committee hearing. Secretary Bodman attended the hearing to relay the Bush Administration’s energy policy for the upcoming fiscal year. 

Below is the transcript of Ross’s remarks that he submitted for the record to the Committee:  

“Thank you Chairman Barton and Ranking Member Dingell for having this important hearing today to discuss the Administration’s Fiscal Year 2006 Budget Proposal for the Department of Energy. I appreciate Secretary Bodman taking time to be here with us to discuss the priorities of the Administration and to answer questions related to energy policy.   

“With the increasing costs of natural gas, volatility in the energy markets, and rising gas prices, I believe it is imperative that we discuss methods to increase domestic production and to make it more affordable.  One of the ways to do this is to increase the production and use of cleaner, renewable agriculture-based energy.  I believe that the incentives that have been provided at both the federal and state levels to encourage this form of production should be expanded.  While the production of ethanol, the primary bio-fuel produced by the agricultural sector, has risen from about 175 million gallons in 1980 to 3.3 billion gallons in 2004, it only accounted for about 0.8% of U.S. petroleum consumption and 0.3% of total U.S. energy consumption in 2003.  I am looking forward to the Secretary’s thoughts on how we can increase the use of farm-based production. 

“Another concern I have in reference to the Administration’s budget is the reduction of funding for Power Marketing Administrations (PMAs) and proposed rate increases.  The budget request for FY06 is $57 million, a decrease of $152 million, or a reduction of 72.6%. The Southwestern Power Administration that serves over 200,000 constituents in my district would be adversely impacted by this proposal.  It is my understanding that the cost of the electricity sold from federal dams would increase at 20% per year until the rates are at an undetermined market level.  The power that is received from the Southwestern Power Administration is peaking power, which means my constituents receive it when it is most needed, to heat or cool their homes when temperatures increase or decrease substantially.  As a result of this proposal, the power rates in many areas in Arkansas that have not benefited from the economic recovery would increase.  I am deeply concerned about this and would like to discuss it in more detail at the appropriate time. 

“Again, thank you for convening this hearing and I look forward to the testimony from Secretary Bodman.” 


 




 
Please Contact Mike at 
1-800-223-2220 
mike.ross@mail.house.gov or
www.house.gov/ross



 


 

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