Voting Against Spending Plan

Press Release

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree says a spending bill that will be up for a vote in the U.S. House tomorrow would be bad for the economy and bad for Maine people.

"The priorities of this bill are all wrong and it puts the burden on the most vulnerable," Pingree said. "It cuts LIHEAP for low income families and a cuts nutrition program for mothers and children, while spending more in Afghanistan and Iraq. This isn't a spending bill I can vote for."

The bill--which funds the government for the remainder of the fiscal year--cuts LIHEAP spending by about $400 million and the Women, Infants and Children nutrition program by $500 million, while increasing the defense budget by $5 billion.

Pingree also said many of the cuts in the bill would be bad for the economy.

"The cuts in this bill will hurt our economic recovery and cost an estimated 400,000 jobs nationwide," Pingree said. "When high-speed rail construction stops, construction workers lose their jobs. When Community Health Centers close, nurses lose their jobs."

The bill also makes significant cuts to NOAA, which provides critical support for Maine's fishing industry and cuts job retraining programs like those used to help displaced manufacturing workers in Maine.

Pingree also cited cuts to a program to help struggling homeowners as a reason she is opposed to the bill.

"I frequently hear from Maine families who are struggling to pay their mortgages, and one important resource we can provide are mortgage counselors who help them try to work through their problems and stay in their homes. Cutting this program is absolutely unacceptable with so many people facing foreclosure," Pingree said.

Meanwhile, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office reported today that the bill would only reduce the budget by less than half a billion this year.

Source