WASHINGTON – Congressman Jim Himes (CT-4) joined President Obama in urging members of the House and Senate to pass legislation requiring that any new mandatory government spending be matched with budget cuts or savings elsewhere. Today the President announced the official transmission of legislation that would reinstitute statutory pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) rules, a move Congressman Himes believes provides a way to restore much-needed fiscal discipline to the federal government.

“As a result of a crushing recession and years of fiscal irresponsibility, the federal deficit has become a significant problem, and it’s time to reign in the nation’s spending,” Congressman Himes said.  “Rather than kick the can down the road, we’ve taken unprecedented action to address the worst recession in a generation to get our country’s economy and finances back on track. As we move forward, there’s no reason Congress can’t manage the same fiscal discipline Connecticut families live by every day.”

Congressman Himes has a record of fighting for fiscal discipline in Congress.  He cosponsored legislation to stop the automatic pay raise for members of Congress and has been a staunch advocate of careful oversight of the Toxic Asset Relief Program (TARP). Additionally, the Congressman cosponsored legislation to bring increased accountability to earmarks, even adopting a policy for his own office that forbids campaign contributions from institutions for which he has requested an appropriation.

Today’s announcement marks the first time the Obama Administration has officially transmitted legislation to Congress.