Every elected official in the country talks about cutting spending, balancing budgets and being a good steward of taxpayer resources, but according to a recent report, Alabama’s U.S. senators are doing a lot more than just talk about it.
Sens. Jeff Sessions and Richard Shelby have returned millions of dollars to the U.S. Treasury by keeping their staffs small and not traveling lavishly.
According to WAFF, each senator’s budget is “determined by a formula that includes a state’s total number of residents and its distance from Washington.” Based on that formula, each of Alabama’s two U.S. senators had an operating budget of just over $3 million in the last full fiscal year.
Sen. Sessions spent less than $2.4 million of his budget, returning over $650,000 — roughly 20% — to the Treasury.
“We really need to have leadership that says, ‘every department; every agency is going to protect every single taxpayer dollar,'” said Sessions. “We are going to get something worthwhile for that dollar we extract from you and we are going to honor the money you give us.”
Sen. Shelby spent less just over $1.8 million, returning almost $1.2 million — roughly 39% — to the Treasury. As a matter of fact, over the past 5 years, Shelby has given back over $5 million, or an average of 42% of his budget.
“I make a conscious effort to spend only what is necessary to best serve my constituents,” said Shelby. “Taxpayers deserve to recapture every other cent. I maintain a lean and efficient staff, focused on producing for the people of Alabama. But I also couldn’t serve my constituents well if I weren’t frequently on the ground in Alabama listening to their concerns and being accountable to them for my record. The money that I spend on travel is used to visit each of our 67 counties every year, and I will maintain that pace going forward.”
With the country over $17 trillion in debt — and with trillions more in unfunded liabilities — a few million dollars here and there may not seem like a lot. But watchdog groups like Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) say that it is important for federal elected officials to show a commitment to fiscal restraint in their own offices, even if those savings aren’t going to put a huge dent in the total debt.
CAGW issues a congressional scorecard each year that rates senators and congressman on their commitment to being good stewards of taxpayer resources. The average senator scores in the 40s on the CAGW scorecard, but Sessions and Shelby have routinely risen above 80, earning them the CAGW label of “Taxpayer Hero.”
CAGW President Tom Schatz has been particularly complimentary of Sen. Sessions.
“Anyone can talk about cutting waste and lowering taxes,” said Schatz. “Sen. Sessions is of the rare breed who ‘walks the walk’ by voting to ease the burden of a cumbersome, bloated federal government. Cutting waste is a politically difficult task because almost every program has an active constituency that profits from the status quo. But Sen. Sessions recognizes that the federal government must set priorities. He has taken a long-term view of the nation’s fiscal problems and makes a serious effort to tackle the enormous debt being left to future generations.”
Follow Cliff on Twitter @Cliff_Sims
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