 On July 19th, the House Committee on Government Reform had a hearing on two pieces of legislation that created sunset commissions (H.R. 5766 and H.R. 3282). The bills considered created an unelected panel with broad powers to recommend cuts, alterations or eliminations of federal programs, including Medicaid, Medicare, and SCHIP. The committee will mark up the legislation July 20th, and it could go to the House floor for a vote as early as the week of July 24th. Fifty-five organizations sent a letter to chairman Tom Davis (R-VA) and ranking member Henry Waxman (D-CA) expressing our concerns about sunset commissions. The letter is attached below. The outlook in the Senate for sunset commission legislation is not yet clear. We do know, however, that majority leader Frist and budget chairman Gregg are eager to bring some budget process legislation to the floor. At this point, the most likely bill would give the President line-item veto power. We'll stay on top of the Senate picture and alert you as things develop. If you want to get more involved in the sunset commission debate, OMB Watch is taking a lead. More information can be found on the Sunset Commission Resource Center website. (One last note - a handful of state and local organizations told us they wanted to sign on and we thank you earnestly for that. But because the local groups represented just a few states we thought it made the sign-ons look lopsided. We encourage you draft your own letter, or to check in with OMB Watch to see how else you can be helpful.)
Sunset Commissions Threaten Medicaid and MedicareThe Honorable Thomas Davis The Honorable Henry Waxman Dear Chairman Davis and Ranking Member Waxman: We are writing to communicate our concerns about H.R. 5766, the Government Efficiency Act of 2006, a bill that would create a series of unelected sunset commissions to review federal agencies and programs. We believe H.R. 5766 poses a serious threat to the millions of children, seniors, people with disabilities, pregnant women, and working families who rely on Medicaid, Medicare and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). The bill would allow the President or Congress to establish a series of commissions to review clusters of agencies and programs. All federal programs would come under commission examination. The unelected commissioners would have one year to develop recommendations on which federal programs to kill, change or keep the same. The recommendations would be fast-tracked through Congress. Savings generated from commission recommendations would go towards deficit reduction and could not be used to redirect to other services. Sunset commissions subvert the political process. Programs like Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP enjoy broad support throughout the country but could be overhauled or even eliminated by a narrow, partisan majority. Significant changes and cutbacks to Medicaid, Medicare and SCHIP could be quickly moved through Congress with very little debate. Sunset commissions duplicate the work of Congress. Congress already has a method for reviewing federal programs and making necessary legislative changes. The existing committee structure in Congress is designed to provide Congressional oversight of federal programs. Authorizing and appropriations committee members and their staff develop substantial policy knowledge about programs under their jurisdiction that would far surpass the understanding of a short-lived commission charged with multiple programs to review. The small group of unelected individuals comprising a sunset commission would engage in a costly process that would duplicate oversight already being performed by the Energy and Commerce Committee (in the case of Medicaid and SCHIP) and the Committee on Ways and Means (in the case of Medicare). Sunset commissions threaten important services that help those on Medicaid and Medicare. The legislation would also threaten other important social services that Medicaid and Medicare beneficiaries rely on, such as food assistance, housing, employment and training and others. All federal programs and services are subject to the review of a sunset commission. Any savings achieved from cutting or eliminating services must go towards deficit reduction; they may not go to increases in other maintained, priority federal programs. Sunset commissions shut the public out of the process. The bill allows a sunset commission to take testimony and evidence, or disseminate its findings to the public, but there is no requirement of any hearings or public participation. Millions of Americans rely on Medicaid, Medicare or SCHIP for their health and well-being. Sunset commission proposals such as H.R. 5766 endanger these critical health programs and we urge you to oppose them. Sincerely, AFL-CIO CC: Members of the Government Reform Committee
|