Pence Renews No Earmark Policy

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FEBRUARY 24, 2009

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WASHINGTON, DC - With consideration of the Democrats' omnibus spending bill set for tomorrow, U.S. Congressman Mike Pence released the following statement extending his moratorium on requesting earmarks to include Fiscal Year 2010:

"The latest omnibus spending bill considered by Congress was full of thousands of unexamined earmarks totaling hundreds of millions in taxpayer dollars. This poorly created piece of legislation further portrays an appropriations process that is deeply flawed.

"I strongly believe that the earmark process needs to be one that is transparent-open, fair, and responsible. American people from every walk of life deserve to be able to see how their tax dollars are being spent. Unfortunately, recent experience shows that billions of dollars of earmarks are not vetted and are too often included at the 11th hour as part of massive spending bills, the provisions of which receive scant hours of public debate and scrutiny before the final vote is called.

"To be clear, I am not saying that all earmarking is wrong. Congress is charged with the authority to spend the people's money in ways both large and small. However, each earmark ought to be publicly accessible with enough time for a full examination before Congress votes. Sadly, this is not the case.

"The current system allows earmarks to be requested for projects thousands of miles away from the districts that the requesting Member represents, and it has led to numerous instances of waste and public corruption. As elected officials, we owe our constituents a system that discourages abuse by allowing the sunlight of transparency time to shine into the dark corners of appropriations bills well before votes are held.

"Throughout my career in Congress, I have sought to meet the highest ethical standard of transparency and accountability that Members of Congress are charged to uphold. I was one of the first in Congress to post appropriations requests on my congressional website and I have never traded my vote for an earmark. For years, I have advocated for earmark reform and have opposed leaders in both parties when I felt Congress was using the power of the federal purse in fiscally irresponsible ways.

"Last year, my frustration with the status quo led me to declare a one-year moratorium from requesting earmarks. While some progress has been made, there is still too little accountability and too much waste in a process that is still too opaque. It is time to end earmarking as we know it-we must restore public confidence in how we spend the people's money. It is because I believe that all Americans deserve better, that I am renewing my commitment to remove myself from the system while continuing to push for reform of the earmark process.

"As we move forward, it is my hope that Congressional leaders will embrace bipartisan calls for transparency and accountability once and for all to an area where true reform is so desperately needed."

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