NTU Goes to Bat for Vern Buchanan's Supercommitee Proposal

Florida Republican U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanans bill to open up the bicameral supercomittee, tasked under the recent federal debt-ceiling deal to cut spending, received some conservative support on Wednesday when the National Taxpayers Union (NTU) backed the bill.

The NTU, which has been fighting for decades for lower taxes and smaller government, sent letters to all members of Congress urging them to back Buchanans bill, which is sponsored by U.S. Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., in the Senate.

"The issues with which the Select Committee on Deficit Reduction will be dealing have the potential to affect far too many lives and wallets to be handled behind closed doors," the NTU insisted in the letter. "NTU encourages you to work toward passage of HR 2796, which would ensure that the committee's work is conducted in a transparent and accessible manner."

Buchanan weighed in on the importance of his measure and the need for the public to have access to the committee, which is in charge of cutting $1.2 trillion in federal spending over the next decade.

"This is a pivotal point in our nation's history," said Buchanan. "In the past, massive legislative measures have been written in the middle of the night by a handful of members and staff, and then quickly passed into law before the American people have a chance to even see what the final version looks like, let alone determine how they feel about it. This is not acceptable."