50
2 votes
Apr 26, 2015

On the surface, this seems like it would fix a lot of things. But, what is one subject? How does the budget get done? Is the budget a combination of 500 bills now, or is the budget one subject? If the budget is one subject, what defines a budget item? (Everything has spending attached to it). What about the Farm bill - does E15 gas production qualify as a farm item because it uses corn in the production?

A better way might be to give the president line item veto power. This would allow the bulk of the bill to be passed and send the vetoed parts back to Congress for more work. It would also eliminate the ability for congress to hold up major legislation by putting an objectionable item in a larger bill. Line item veto is common for State Governors and works pretty well. We have a viable pattern to follow with long years of practical use.

I do agree that unrelated items should be kept out of major bills. A bill on hospital reform shouldn't have a line item for military appropriations in it for example. This too can be kept in check by a line item veto.

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100
User voted I support this bill.
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2 votes,
Apr 26, 2015

But the budget is one subject, it's sets up what get paid from different bills but it's only dealing with paying those bills, it's not each bill itself.

You would have to break out some stuff on some bill, the farm bill also has food stamps so food stamps would be a separate bill.

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-1
User voted I support this bill.
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1 vote,
May 11, 2015

The budget used to be 500 bills, called appropriation bills, and allows Congress to fund the government more efficiently. As one bill, to get appropriate funding for the department of education, you have to cave on spending more on the IRS. You want to cut spending to the military? Fine but you have to approve these 7 pork spending projects in Indiana that fall under the EPA. Everything gets tired to everything. I don't think the amount of money spent on veteran care with the VA should have anything to do with how much money we give to the NSA.

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