“Such Massive Cuts to Our Military Put Our National Security and Global Economy in Great Peril”

Washington, DC – Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference, applauded the passage of H.R. 5872, the SequestrationTransparency Act of 2012 in the House today.  The legislation – which passed unanimously out of the House Budget Committee – requires the President to submit a report to Congress detailing the Administration’s plan to implement the budget sequestration cuts required to take effect in January 2013.

“As a representative of one of the largest air force bases in the country, Fairchild Air Force Base, I am proud that the House passed this important legislation and I am eager to expedite its implementation,” said Rep. McMorris Rodgers.  “In the upcoming months, we face unprecedented cuts to national security – most notably a 20 percent reduction in Department of Defense funding over the next ten years.  Such massive cuts to our military put our national security and global economy in great peril.  And I refuse to stand by and allow the process to proceed without greater transparency, efficiency and accountability.”

The need for the Sequestration Transparency Act arises from the failure of the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction to approve a $1.2 trillion deficit reduction target in November 2011.  Consequently, a sequestration of that amount is scheduled to begin on January 2, 2013, which would include an additional $492 billion in cuts to the defense budget on top of the $487 billion already being implemented.  The ramifications to soldiers, veterans, the economy and national security would be devastating.

“Service members and their families at Fairchild – and at bases all across this country – have a right to know how they will be affected by the sequester.  At a time when national security is paramount, they cannot afford to face more risk, more job loss, and more uncertainty.”

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