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Tell Your Representatives to Vote 'No' on Sunset Commission Legislation!

November 22, 2009 Subject: I am writing to oppose any legislation for sunset commissions. Whether the vehicle in question is H.R. 5766, H.R. 3277, H.R. 3282, the sunset commission sections of S. 3521, or some provision still to be unveiled, I am concerned by the prospect of forcing federal programs to justify their continued existence in front of an unelected commission with the power to recommend whether they live, die, or get “realigned.” Decisions on federal programs that inspect the safety of our food and drugs, keep workers safe on the job, enforce environmental and civil rights protections, help educate our children, provide needed social services such as healthcare and food assistance, and much more are too important to be left to an unelected, unaccountable panel. Congress has the obligation and authority to conduct oversight of federal agencies. This power should not be abdicated to the executive branch. There is no need for these sunset commission proposals. Congress already has the power to decide that programs should be eliminated or reorganized. Mechanisms already exist to evaluate these programs; beyond Congress’s own oversight authority, the Government Accountability Office, the Inspector General’s office, the Congressional Research Service and the Office of Management and Budget all conduct evaluations of agency effectiveness. Moreover, there are many programs for which there is simply no question of their worth. Forcing programs to conduct even more costly analysis to justify their existence would be a waste of resources — resources that should instead be spent on meeting their missions to serve the public. I am also troubled by any provision that would force the recommendations of unelected sunset commissions through Congress on a fast-track, take-it-or-leave-it basis, with little opportunity for debate and no opportunity for amendment. Questions as crucial as the very function of government programs are too important for debate to be muzzled. Sunset commission proposals do not address government waste. Instead, they would force programs targeted in budget cuts to face the chopping block for a second time. I cannot support this dangerous concept. We will add your signature from the information you provide.		First Name* Last Name* Email* Street* Street 2 City* State/Province* Select a state Alabama Alaska American Samoa Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware D.C. Florida Georgia Guam Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Northern Mariana Islands Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Puerto Rico Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virgin Islands Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Armed Forces (the) Americas Armed Forces Europe Armed Forces Pacific Alberta British Columbia Manitoba Newfoundland New Brunswick Nova Scotia Northwest Territories Nunavut Ontario Prince Edward Island Quebec Saskatchewan Yukon Territory Other Zip/Postal Code* Send an Email Add me to the following list(s): Regulatory Action
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