Washington, DC - Congressman Bobby Schilling (IL-17) not only voted to cut his office budget more than 10 percent since taking office, but will return $110,000 of his 2011 office budget to taxpayers, he said today.
Each congressional office is allotted an annual office budget, or Members Representational Allowance (MRA), from which it pays operating expenses such as district office rent, staff salaries, office supplies, and all mailings to constituents. Schilling not only voted to reduce his 2011 office budget by 5 percent, but is returning another 8 percent or $110,000 to taxpayers in 2011. He has voted to reduce Members' office budgets another 6.4 percent in 2012 and expects to return a portion of that to the taxpayers at the end of the year as well.
"At a time when we are borrowing 42 cents of every dollar Washington spends, Congressional offices like mine should make do with less," Schilling said. "While some expenses may vary from year to year based on the needs of the district, I am proud my offices have been successfully providing high-quality services to my constituents while reducing our overall expenses and remaining mindful of taxpayer dollars. The $110,000 I am returning may not solve our debt crisis, but every dollar counts. Congress must lead by example to end Washington's spending addiction on behalf of the taxpayer."
Schilling spent a total of $151,138 less in 2011 than his predecessor did in 2010, including $405,018 less on staff salaries and expenses alone. He spent a total of $103,038 less than what his predecessor spent in 2009, including $362,018 less on staff salaries.
Schilling has brought his own health care to Washington, rejected congressional pay raises and the pension, and has authored legislation to tie Members of Congress' access to their federal pensions to the Social Security age of their constituents. Schilling also has authored the Savings Over Spending Act to incentivize smarter spending across the agencies of the federal government by discouraging end-of-year "spend downs."
This week, Schilling also sent a letter to Speaker of the House John Boehner (OH-08), asking that the House work to ensure a Member of Congress' returned MRA funds are sent immediately to the Treasury in an effort to pay down our national debt. Currently, these unspent funds are held in a separate fund for two years prior to being sent to the Treasury.
"Going forward, the immediate return of unspent MRA funds to the Treasury for debt reduction should be the standard by which we govern," Schilling wrote. "The more incentives we have at our disposal to save taxpayer money, the better. This is their money."
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