Rand Paul Introduces Sequester Bill

Not only is Senator Rand Paul (R., Ky.) calling out the Obama administration’s “dishonest” doom-mongering on the sequester, he also put forward his own plan, released today, to replace the impending cuts with alternative savings, and to do so “without layoffs,” according to a release from the senator’s office.

Paul’s bill would reduce federal spending by more than $85 billion annually by directing the government to:

Stop Hiring New Federal Employees ($6.5 billion per year)

More than 60,000 people left the federal workforce in 2011. This provision would end the practice of hiring new employees to replace them.

Bring Federal-Employee Pay in Line with Private Jobs ($32 billion per year)

The Congressional Budget Office estimates that federal-employee compensation is 16 percent higher compared with the private sector. This provision would reduce federal salaries to a more commensurate level.

Reduce Federal-Employee Travel by 25 Percent ($2.25 billion per year)

The federal government spends about $9 billion on travel, according to the General Services Administration, which ironically was the center of a recent scandal for its exorbitant spending on travel and conference costs. Paul bill’s would rein in such expenses. 

Focus Military Research on Military Needs ($6 billion per year)

Paul’s office cites research from Senator Tom Coburn (R., Okla.), which found that the Defense Department spent $6 billion on research that had little or nothing to do with military needs.

Require Competitive Bidding for Government Contracts ($19 billion per year)

This provision would repeal prevailing-wage requirements under which employees are often paid higher wages to work on federal projects, and end the practice of awarding federal contracts without a competitive bidding process to ensure the government is contracting work at the lowest price possible.

Cut 50 Percent of Foreign Aid ($20 billion per year)

It is consistently one of the only portions of the budget Americans actually want to cut.

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/341366/rand-paul-introduces-sequester-bill-andrew-stiles