Given your interest in budget and federal spending issues, I thought you would be interested in this week’s YouCut winner, a proposal that would eliminate the Advanced Earned Income Tax Credit (AEITC), saving taxpayers $1.1 billion over the next decade. The AEITC is not widely used by those eligible for the program and has been found to have a notoriously high rate of waste, fraud, and abuse. YouCut is a website that allows Americas to submit suggestions on how best to cut out of control federal spending.  One of the selections is selected as a weekly winner and it is offered on the House floor. Thus far, the total amount of savings offered through YouCut legislation is more than $120 billion. Unfortunately, to this point, House Democrats have turned their back on each opportunity to cut federal spending. I’m deeply concerned about our mounting debt and it is essential that we undertake all efforts to reduce federal spending. We are risking our future economic prosperity and threaten to leave future generations with a lower standard of living.  I spoke on the House floor on this issue and you can see that video here.  I have included the full text of my remarks below.

“Mr. Speaker, I urge the House to defeat the previous question on this rule so we can vote to end the advanced earned income tax credit. This year, the federal government is running a $1.5 trillion deficit, and 43 cents of every dollar we’re spending is borrowed money. The American people want us to get spending under control, and the Republican YouCut initiative enables the people to vote on specific spending cuts.

“This week, YouCut participants have asked Congress to consider eliminating the advanced EITC. A GAO report found that the advanced EITC is unpopular with eligible taxpayers but disproportionately subject to fraud, with 20% of claimants lacking a valid Social Security number.   Repealing the advance option would not affect low-income workers’ eligibility for the EITC, but it would save the taxpayers $1.1 billion by cutting down on fraud and abuse.

“This is a bipartisan measure. In fact, President Obama included it in his budget for this year. By taking up this commonsense proposal, we can cut more than a billion dollars’ worth of fraud out of the federal budget. Let’s take this opportunity to show the American people we’re serious about tackling the deficit.”