Balanced Federal Budget Amendment

Economy
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A federal balanced budget has several benefits:

  1. Reduced National Debt: A balanced budget prevents the government from running deficits, helping to stabilize or reduce the national debt over time. This can decrease the burden of debt repayment on future generations.

  2. Lower Interest Payments: With less borrowing, the government spends less on interest payments. This can free up resources for other priorities like infrastructure, healthcare, or education, providing more value to taxpayers.

  3. Economic Stability: A balanced budget can promote fiscal discipline, reducing the risk of economic instability. It can signal to investors and financial markets that the government is committed to managing its finances responsibly, which can increase investor confidence and stabilize markets.

  4. Decreased Inflation Risk: By avoiding excessive government borrowing, a balanced budget can help keep inflation in check. Large deficits can sometimes lead to higher inflation if they result in too much money being injected into the economy.

  5. Encourages Long-term Planning: A focus on balancing the budget can lead to more careful consideration of spending programs and initiatives, prioritizing those that have long-term benefits rather than short-term gains. It encourages strategic planning rather than temporary fixes.

  6. Improved National Credit Rating: Consistently balanced budgets can enhance a country’s credit rating, making it cheaper for the government to borrow money when necessary. This can be beneficial for managing emergencies or unexpected economic downturns.

  7. Promotes Accountability and Transparency: A balanced budget requires legislators to make tough choices about spending priorities. This can promote more transparency in government spending, as policymakers are forced to justify expenditures and avoid waste.

  8. Limits Government Size: Balancing the budget can prevent excessive government expansion by ensuring that spending aligns more closely with revenue. This can lead to a more efficient allocation of resources and potentially lower taxes.

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I’d go one step further and eliminate the option to carry debt or surplus at all. If they miss the budget due to whatever policy/disaster/current event, they immediately have to repay the deficit back by reducing/changing current budget to cover the shortfall. Conversely, if they have a surplus they have to refund the tax payers.

The government is way too bloated and currently doesn’t understand that they are spending our money. It doesn’t grow on trees, it comes from our hard work and shouldn’t be wasted away by government ineptitude.

This would obviously have to be implemented with a future deadline for the current debt to be paid down but make it a hard deadline.

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