Georgia Senator David Perdue, a member of the Senate Budget Committee, offered an amendment to cut increases in spending in the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act.
A press release stated, "Senator Perdue opposed Washington’s grand bargain negotiated by congressional leaders last fall that increased government spending, and he will continue to outline sensible cuts to lower government spending throughout the overall appropriations process."
Senator Perdue’s amendment achieves roughly $355 million in savings by reducing the overall cost of the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, bringing it back in line with last year’s funding level. The savings are achieved by cutting proportionally from Department of Interior, non-defense Department of Energy, and the Independent Agency accounts.
“Last year, we worked hard to draft a responsible budget, cut $7 trillion in spending from President Obama’s original budget request, and started to tackle our country’s debt crisis,” said Senator Perdue. “Unfortunately, Washington’s grand bargain, which I strongly opposed, quickly abandoned those efforts and reverted back to spending as usual. Businesses and families have to prioritize spending and make responsible budget decisions in order to stay under their budgets. It is not easy, but it is doable. This amendment cuts approximately $355 million by trimming programs and reversing budget increases. With $19 trillion in debt, we have to prioritize all of our spending. Like many things, we cannot afford nearly $355 million in new spending. We simply cannot afford it.”
Senator Perdue has made it a priority to "tackle the debt crisis facing the country and to fix Washington’s broken budget process." Senator Perdue is a co-sponsor of a Balanced Budget Amendment and has outlined guiding budget principles he thinks Washington should adopt in order to get spending under control.