82R2358 CBE-D
By: Raymond H.C.R. No. 23
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, The gravity of federal debt and federal obligations
was established early in American history, with deficits occurring
only in relation to extraordinary circumstances such as war; yet
for much of the 20th century and into the 21st, the United States
has operated on a budget deficit, and it is estimated that the
deficit for the 2010 budget year will total more than $1.3 trillion;
and
WHEREAS, The higher the deficit, the more the government must
spend on paying interest on the debt, leaving less money for new
programs or tax cuts; compounding the problem is the use of deficit
spending, which becomes a claim on current or future taxpayers; and
WHEREAS, Through the years, Congress has attempted to set
budgetary restraints for itself in the form of a balanced budget
amendment; the proposal won wide support in 1995, failing by only
one vote in the senate; and
WHEREAS, The growing burden of public debt poses a threat to
the nation's economic health, and action must be taken to restore
fiscal responsibility; a balanced budget amendment would require
the government not to spend more than it receives in revenues and
compel lawmakers to carefully consider choices about spending and
taxes; by encouraging spending control and discouraging deficit
spending, a balanced budget amendment will help put the nation on
the path to lasting prosperity; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the 82nd Legislature of the State of Texas
hereby respectfully urge the Congress of the United States to
propose and submit to the states for ratification an amendment to
the United States Constitution to provide for a federal balanced
budget; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to
the speaker of the House of Representatives and the president of the
Senate of the United States Congress, and to all the members of the
Texas delegation to Congress with the request that this resolution
be officially entered in the Congressional Record as a memorial to
the Congress of the United States of America.