During these tough economic times, when Upstate New York families have been forced to cut back and tighten their financial belts-it's time for Congress to do the same and set an example for the rest of the federal government.

As a member of the Blue Dog Coalition-a group of fiscally responsible Democrats who strive for practical government spending whenever possible-I have voted to cut more than $15 billion from federal spending bills this year alone.  Click here to read the Blue Dog Blueprint for Fiscal Reform, which is designed to be an incremental and systematic approach to restoring fiscal integrity.

Blocked Congressional Pay Raise

When so many hard working men and women have seen a reduction in their hours or wages or even lost their jobs, Congress continues to reward itself with an automatic pay raise each year.  Enough is enough.  Congress can no longer operate in a bubble.  The past two years, I helped successfully block this automatic pay raise, saving millions of tax dollars in the process.  Additionally, I have worked to repeal the law passed granting these yearly automatic raises.  If Members of Congress feel they deserve a raise, they should have to vote for it and be held accountable to the American people. Read More

Congressional Belt Tightening Act

Recently, I introduced the Congressional Belt Tightening Act of 2010, which would cut salaries for Members of Congress and their office budgets by 5% next year.  This year, I lead by example returned more than 8 % of my official office budget to the Treasury for deficit reduction-a savings of $120,000.  Additionally, this bill would repeal the yearly automatic pay raise, which was approved by Congress in 1989, and would require an up or down vote on all salary increases for Members of Congress. Read More

Pay-As-You-Go

Earlier this year, I led the push to restore 'pay-as-you-go' budget discipline in Congress, which returned reckless spending to the basic rule for every family budget: you don't spend money you don't have.  This measure is similar to the bipartisan PAYGO law that was in place during the 1990s, which helped reduce deficits to create a budget surplus and produce an economic boom.

As we work towards recovery and our economy begins to grow, it is important for us to be more financially responsible and spend within our means-that goes for Congress too. Read More