Members struggle to get hearing on bill punishing Congress for budget failure

A bipartisan group of representatives is struggling to get a hearing on a bill that would withhold pay from members of Congress if annual budget and appropriations bills are not passed on time.

Last year, Congress again failed to pass a budget resolution for all 12 annual appropriations bills by Oct. 1, as required by law. Spending was determined instead in a giant omnibus appropriations bill that was released hours before a House vote in December.

The No Budget, No Pay bill, sponsored by Blue Dog Rep. Jim Cooper (D-Tenn.) and Sen. Dean Heller (R-Nev.), will get a hearing at the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs on March 7.

So far, however, Cooper has been unable to get House Administration Committee Chairman Dan Lungren (R-Calif.) to hold a hearing on the bill, which has 19 co-sponsors.

On Feb. 1, Cooper wrote to Lungren asking for a hearing.

“Congress should be held accountable for not fulfilling its duties. Passing a budget and appropriations bills are basic responsibilities of Congress. However, Congress has not adopted a budget in more than 1,000 days. Since 1952, Congress has passed its appropriations bills on time only 4 times, and has failed to pass its appropriations bills on-time for the 15th straight year,” Cooper wrote.

Lungren’s office referred calls on the matter to House Administration. The committee did not respond to requests for comment.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) announced last week that for the third straight year, the Senate will not pass a separate budget resolution. Reid argued that the August debt-ceiling deal constitutes a budget since it sets the level of spending for 2013 already.

Even though the bill threatening lawmakers’ own wallets has stalled, other budget reform measures are moving.

The House last week took up and passed two other budget reform measures that would change the way that the Congressional Budget Office scores bills. This week it will take up a bill giving the president greater powers to request appropriated spending be rescinded.