WASHINGTON—Today, House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) delivered opening remarks at a markup to consider budget legislation that advances President Trump’s America First agenda and saves hardworking American taxpayers over $50 billion. Chairman Comer emphasized that the budget reconciliation process offers a generational opportunity to fundamentally change how the federal government operates and allows the Committee to enact budget reforms that help balance the federal budget and restore fiscal responsibility. He concluded that these reforms would move the country toward the more accountable federal government the American people demand and deserve.
Below are Chairman Comer’s remarks as prepared for delivery.
Today, this Committee has a generational opportunity to fulfill its part of the House-mandated charge to enact reforms to benefit the American people.
This work is part of a larger effort led by President Trump to fundamentally change how the federal government operates.
Last November, Democrats offered to provide “more of the same,” but the American people rejected that and elected President Trump to an historic second term.
President Trump promised to change Washington, D.C. And he has delivered on that promise in his first 100 days in office. House Republicans’ budget takes action to further deliver on President Trump’s America First agenda. It provides the resources needed to secure our border, enforce our immigration laws, and deport criminal illegal aliens.
It grows our economy by reducing taxes for American families and small businesses. It encourages investment in the U.S. to create good paying jobs.
It restores America’s energy dominance by dismantling the radical left’s Green New Deal scam and empowering American energy producers.
Republicans’ budget restores peace through strength to provide our military with the resources it needs to protect our freedom.
And our budget will make the federal government more efficient and accountable.
Today we are considering reforms within the Oversight Committee’s jurisdiction that reduce federal deficits by at least $50 billion dollars over ten years.
The cost reduction changes to the federal government the Committee will consider are part of the President’s vision for enacting his legislative agenda and pass significant taxpayer savings into law.
Congressional procedure, precedent, and tradition too often contribute to an ever-expanding federal government while too little is done to shrink the administrative state or make the federal bureaucracy more efficient.
The budget reconciliation process, while imposing requirements and some limitations on cost-saving measures this committee is considering, provides a rare opportunity to reverse that trajectory.
The Oversight and Government Reform Committee has very limited jurisdiction to help reduce the federal budget deficit.
Specifically, the Oversight Committee is empowered to pursue civil service reforms—including federal employee benefits and reigning in the influence of partisan and unaccountable government employee unions.
Such federal employee retirement benefits far outpace the retirement benefits that most Americans in the private sector enjoy.
The Congressional Budget Office issued an April 2024 report indicating that:
“Benefits for federal workers cost 43 percent more per hour worked, on average, than benefits for private-sector workers”
Furthermore, CBO notes that:
“Benefits also constituted a larger share of total compensation for federal workers (40 percent) than for workers in the private sector (30 percent).”
World-class employment benefits provided to federal employees are well-known, which can include eleven paid holidays; various incentives and awards; health, life, and long-term care insurance; flexible spending accounts; student loan repayment and forgiveness plans; generous leave and workplace flexibilities; and childcare, professional development, and commuter subsidies.
The simple truth is that a significant amount of the costs associated with all of these benefits are funded by hardworking taxpayers in the private sector and increasingly now federal government borrowing.
The legislation before us today advances important budgetary reforms that will save taxpayers money.
The proposed reforms also account for some unique employee situations brought to this Committee’s attention and we have therefore made some changes to avoid unintended consequences contrary to clear public interests.
This includes key exemptions to maintain public services provided by certain frontline federal employee groups such as law enforcement officers, border patrol officers, air traffic controllers, nuclear material couriers, and firefighters who typically have shortened federal careers due to mandatory retirement rules.
Taken together, these reforms will reduce the deficit by $50.9 billion while moving us toward the more accountable federal government the American people demand and deserve.
I now recognize my colleague Mr. Lynch for his statement.