Rep. Russell’s Legislation Passes House With Trump Administration’s Historic Rescission Package

Washington, DC – Rep. Steve Russell (OK-5) voted for H.R. 3, the Spending Cuts to Expired and Unnecessary Programs Act, which passed the House by a margin of 210 to 206 last night. H.R. 3 mirrors President Trump’s rescission package, and will save more than $15 billion. Rep. Russell’s H.R.1623 makes up 25 percent of those savings.
Rep. Russell introduced H.R. 1623, a bill to repeal the ATVM, in March 2017. The ATVM is a loan program created by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 to assist car manufacturers in producing more fuel-efficient passenger vehicles. The last loan the program issued was in 2011, and only five loans have been issued since the program’s inception in 2007. In a 2013 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, it was noted that participation in the ATVM program projects higher costs than benefits for participating car manufacturers. Rep. Russell also introduced H.R. 1623 in the 114th Congress, and President Trump’s proposed budget for 2017 suggested eliminating the program.
Rep. Russell commented on the President’s historic rescissions package passing the House, stating “Given that our nation is more than $21 trillion in debt, I welcome President Trump’s proposed $15 billion rescissions package and was proud to support its passage today. I’m particularly glad that the ATVM is included in this package. I’ve been fighting to cut this wasteful program since 2016, when I first introduced legislation that would repeal the ATVM. Here we have funds that haven’t been touched for years, yet billions remain tied up for this program, which GAO reports isn’t even helpful for the few participants that have used it. We must end the ATVM and return its idle funding to the Treasury.”
Since the ICA became law in 1974, both Republican and Democratic Presidents have proposed nearly $76 billion in rescissions. President Trump’s package is the largest in history, and targets funding that in some cases has been sitting unused in agency coffers for years.