2,100 Organizations Call for End to Sequestration

Dear Representative/Senator: The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 negotiated by Representative Paul Ryan and Senator Patty Murray provided partial, temporary relief from sequestration. With the expiration of this relief in fiscal year (FY) 2016, lawmakers should act quickly to stop sequestration from taking effect in the upcoming fiscal year. The undersigned 2,100 national, state, and local organizations--representing the hundreds of millions of Americans who support and benefit from nondefense discretionary (NDD) programs--strongly urge lawmakers to replace sequestration with a balanced approach to deficit reduction. In so doing, we ask that you consider the following: NDD programs have already been cut too much. NDD programs play a vital role in the health and well-being of our lives and communities. Despite the vast array of important services provided through NDD programs-- from education and job training, to housing and science, to National Parks and veterans services, to public health, safety and security--these programs have been cut dramatically and disproportionately in recent years as lawmakers work to reduce the deficit, even though experts across the political spectrum agree these programs aren't a driving factor behind our nation's mid- and long-term fiscal challenges. As a result of sequestration and other austerity measures enacted since 2011, NDD funding in FY 2014 was about 15 percent below 2010 levels, adjusted for inflation. Without action to stop sequestra...
Source: ActionBioscience - Category: Science Authors: Source Type: news