Sam Graves-This Week in Washington-May 14th, 2009

Below is the most recent This Week in Washington from Congressman Sam Graves. I think the most important thing to take from what Sam says below is the fact that the US government is borrowing 50 cents on every dollar it spends! To put that in perspective it is like an American family spending $3000 a month on a monthly income of $1500. The family would be bankrupt quickly, and if we keep this stupidity up this nation will be bankrupt as well. I don't know what it is going to take to wake people up. This is not sustainable. I can't figure out how adults are making decisions like this. I think it's more proof that those that are really mature grownups and make rational decisions are a minority of Americans. There is no other way to explain it.

It was another week with very few votes on the floor.

H.R. 2187 - 21st Century Green High-Performing Public School Facilities Act – his legislation would direct the Secretary of Education to make grants to state educational agencies for the modernization, renovation or repair of public school facilities. The Congressional Budget
Office estimates that H.R. 2187 would spend $20 billion in school construction funds over the next five years.

Just two months ago, Congress passed the stimulus bill which provided billions for the greening” of school buildings. Those funds have not been spent yet and still Congress is already trying to spend more. We need to take a breath before we spend billions more that we do not have.

Currently, the federal government is borrowing roughly 50 cents for every dollar it spends, and this year alone Washington will spend approximately $2 trillion more than it collects from the American taxpayer. We do not have a revenue problem, we have a spending problem.

H.R. 2346 - Fiscal Year 2009 War Supplemental Appropriations Bill – This bill funds our military efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan for the rest of the fiscal year. It is important for our troops to have the tools they need to battle terrorists.

I supported the bill, but I’m hopeful that it will come back to the House without the unrelated spending that has been dumped into it. We should not turn a bill that is designed to fund our
troops into an omnibus spending bill. There is plenty of time to debate each of those programs on their own merits.

I joined with Rep. Earl Pomeroy of North Dakota this week to introduce the Rural Education
Achievement Program reauthorization. The federal program was created as a part of the No Child Left Behind law and is the only program designed to help rural school districts overcome the increased expenses caused by geographic distance.

REAP helps rural school districts that lack the resources to apply for federal competitive grants and do not have access to large amounts of funding due to small populations. Federal grant funding helps schools to more effectively meet the unique challenges posed by educating students in rural areas.

The quality of our children’s education should not be defined by where they live. Programs like
REAP ensure that all students have the same opportunities to succeed in life. This is bi-partisan legislation that I hope the House will consider this year.

The Small Business Committee held several different hearings this week. The struggle of auto companies has far reaching effects, including the small firms that supply automakers.

Auto parts manufacturers are the number one employer in U.S. manufacturing. According to data from the Center for Automotive Research, suppliers contribute over $388 billion to the U.S. economy and are responsible for over 3.29 million direct and indirect jobs.

A subcommittee heard testimony from small businesses that have to contend daily with the confusing and often contradictory rules of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act. Small manufacturers are forced to pay for the testing of products they purchase or risk selling products that do not conform to the standards established by CPSIA. Limiting the amount of lead that our children are subjected too is good policy. However, common sense says that the law needs to be clearer and equally applied.

On Tuesday, May 26th, I will be hosting a Veterans' Expo at the Missouri National Guard armory in St. Joseph. At the expo will be organizations that serve veterans. Colonel Jack Jackson will be the keynote speaker and we will also have a question and answer session. It will run from 2-5 p.m. If you'd like to attend, please contact Shawna Searcy at 816-792-3976 or email her at shawna.searcy@mail.house.gov.We will be back in session next week.

Sincerely,
Sam Graves