Press Releases

Earlier today, U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman (SC-5) introduced the Earmark Elimination Act in the House of Representatives. This is a re-introduction of an identical bill he introduced in the 116th Congress.

Prior 2011, earmarks had become a frequent source of corruption and furthering of personal agendas by Members of Congress. In 2011, the Congress passed a temporary ban on earmarks, which every session of Congress has since renewed. However, there is now an effort by some in Congress to lift this ban.

Rep. Norman's bill would stop that effort in its tracks and make permanent the federal ban on earmarks in the House. A companion in the Senate expected to be introduced soon by Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT).

While Rep. Norman's full position on earmarks and the appropriations process can be found here, he issued the following brief statement on Thursday:

"Congress has a constitutional responsibility to determine where and how our tax dollars are spent. Unfortunately, the way we appropriate federal dollars has deteriorated into a national disgrace. It amazes me that Congress seeks to restore earmarks but apparently has no desire to restore regular order to the appropriations process. This is sure to lead to more corruption and mismanagement of taxpayer dollars, which is why we need to pass the Earmarks Elimination Act."

Rep. Ted Budd (R-NC) is an original cosponsor of this legislation and issued the following statement:

“Nothing epitomizes what’s wrong with Washington more than pork barrel spending in the form of congressional earmarks. It’s an insult to taxpayers to resurrect such a wasteful and corruptive system. Passing the Earmark Elimination Act would show the American people that the House is committed to ending business as usual in Washington.”

This bill has received the support of FreedomWorks, Heritage Action, Club for Growth, National Taxpayers Union, and Citizens Against Government Waste.