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CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, Year after year, the federal government has failed |
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to make fiscally responsible choices, and Washington must now take |
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aggressive steps to address our serious national deficit; and |
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WHEREAS, The United States Congress routinely passes budgets |
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leading the government to spend more than it receives in revenue; in |
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order to finance the resulting budget deficit, the U.S. Treasury |
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must sell bonds and the government must pay interest on those bonds; |
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this cycle of deficit spending leaves less money for new programs or |
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tax cuts, and it could prove detrimental to the future stability of |
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our nation; and |
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WHEREAS, In the past, such statutory restraints as the failed |
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Gramm-Rudman-Hollings legislation and "PAYGO" rules have proven |
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ineffective and unenforceable, since simple majorities in Congress |
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can alter, weaken, or dismantle fiscal reforms; an amendment to the |
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U.S. Constitution, which requires the assent of two-thirds of |
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Congress and three-quarters of the states, is the only means of |
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guaranteeing permanent enforcement of spending restraints; and |
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WHEREAS, A federal balanced budget amendment will ensure that |
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Congress uses taxpayer dollars wisely, and it is vital that we take |
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this step to avert fiscal calamity and to eliminate future |
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deficits; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the 87th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby respectfully urge the Congress of the United States to |
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propose and submit to the states for ratification an amendment to |
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the United States Constitution providing for a balanced federal |
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budget; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official |
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copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to |
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the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of |
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Representatives of the United States Congress, and to all the |
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members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that |
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this resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record |
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as a memorial to the Congress of the United States of America. |