Members of the Florida delegation from both sides of the aisle are behind a proposal to stop congressional pay if budget bills are not passed on time.
Last week, U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper, D-Tenn., brought back his “No Budget, No Pay Act” which freezes congressional pay if Congress fails to pass the budget and appropriations bills before the April 15 budgetary and October 1 appropriations deadlines. Under Cooper’s proposal, members of both the Senate and the House would not be able to claim retroactive pay. A variation of the bill was passed in 2013 but Cooper said it was watered down as it only covered a single year.
On Wednesday, Cooper made the case for his bill which, if passed, would take effect in February 2019.
“Congress is the only place in America where you get paid for showing up but not doing your work. There shouldn’t be special treatment for members of Congress,” Cooper said. “They should live by the same rules as everybody else: Do your job and do it on time, or you don’t get paid. It’s that simple.”
The proposal is getting strong support from the Florida delegation as two Republicans from the Sunshine State--U.S. Reps. Vern Buchanan and Ron DeSantis--are original co-sponsors. So is U.S. Rep. Ami Bera, D-Calif..
Also backing the bill is U.S. Rep. Stephanie Murphy, D-Fla., who weighed in on Thursday as to why she supported it.
“Most Americans have to do their jobs on time or they don’t get paid. Congress should be held to the same commonsense standard,” said Murphy. “We can’t reduce the deficit if we don’t have a budget that forces us to make tough decisions. Job creators and our armed forces need the stability of a regular, timely budget process to make the long-term investments that help our economy grow and keep our nation safe. No Budget, No Pay would force members of Congress to do their jobs and hold them accountable to the American people when they don’t.”
