No Labels, a coalition of Democrats and Republicans committed to "a new politics of problem solving," held an event on the Capitol Lawn in Washington on Thursday to unveil a 9 bill reform package called, "Make Government Work.' The group says the initiative will make government more efficient and effective while cutting wasteful spending.
The 9 Proposals:
- Make No, Budget, No Pay permanent
- Move to a two-year budgeting process
- Consolidating duplicative federal agencies and programs identified by the Government Accountability Office
- Make sure all federal agencies use strategic sourcing to compile the needs of the entire department
- Stop assuming automatic year-to-year spending increases in agency budgets
- Merge Defense Department health records with Veteran Affairs
- Cut 50 percent of agency travel and replace it with video conferencing
- Incentivize private companies to identify energy saving techniques
- Create a new Commission for Government Transformation to oversee and effect the transformation of various federal government programs
Read more about Make Government Work here.
Seventy members of Congress from both chambers and both sides of the political aisle, referred to as "Problem Solvers," attended the event to show their commitment to get these proposals through the Legislative Branch and to President Barack Obama's desk for signature.
“There are so many common sense reforms we can enact that will save taxpayer money and reform the way we do business in Washington,” U.S. Representative Scott Peters (D-San Diego) said in a press release. “But none of these happen without the support from both sides of the aisle and both Chambers; that’s why this package of reforms is so significant and unique.”
What do you think? Are these common sense solutions to make government work better? What ideas do you think both sides can come together on to increase efficiency and effectiveness in government?