OP/ED: Fixing a Broken Washington

Think about the place where you work. Imagine what it would be like if the people in charge could give themselves a pay raise any time they choose, whether they deserve it or not. It wouldn’t be fair, would it?

As incredible as it sounds, Congress can increase its own pay any time it feels like doing so. In fact, it even has built-in automatic pay hikes to make sure it happens, regardless how the economy is performing and regardless how well or poorly Members are doing their job.

That wouldn’t be tolerated for 10 seconds in the private sector, and there’s no reason why it should be permitted in your government, either. And yet it happens in Washington year after year. This is just one illustration of how badly Washington is broken, and how much needs to be fixed.

Ever since I started serving in the U.S. House in January 2011, I have been looking for opportunities to put the federal government back on the right track. For starters, I have voted to halt those automatic salary increases for Members of Congress. In a time when many Granite Staters are not seeing an increase in their pay (and while many others are looking for a good, middle-class job), it’s only fair that Congress should avoid hiking its own pay.

In addition, I have voted twice to cut funding for my Congressional office by a combined 11.4 percent – more than $100,000. This is only a drop in the financial bucket of the belt tightening Washington needs to do. But it is a positive step, and it demonstrates I not only recognize the need to change the way Congress operates; I’m committed to making those changes happen.

We Granite Staters place much importance on New Hampshire values: we know the value of a dollar, we expect our government to operate with efficiency, and we demand openness and transparency from the public officials who serve us. For too long, Congress turned its back on those values. But I am working hard to restore them on Capitol Hill.

For example, I proudly voted earlier this year to pass the bipartisan STOCK Act. It keeps Members of Congress from using privy information they gain through their position for personal financial gain. This is known as “insider trading,” and the business world has been forced to avoid it for a long time. Finally, Congress took the responsibility to require its Members to operate under the same rules that all other Americans must follow. I am pleased that President Obama quickly signed the STOCK Act into law. (You can read about it by visiting my website, www.guinta.house.com.)

Much more needs to be done. Washington was left to its own devices for too many years, and it developed many bad habits as a result. The good news is public attention is finally focused on correcting Washington’s many excesses. Those problems won’t be changed overnight, but they are changeable. All that is required to bring about the improvements in government we all want to see is leaders with the courage to make them happen.

I hear your demand for improvements in Washington, and I am committed to continue working as hard as I can to make them reality.

If I can be of service to you, or if you want to share your thoughts, suggestions or concerns with me, please call either my district office in Manchester at 603-641-9536 or my Washington office at 202-225-5456, or contact me through my website at www.Guinta.House.Gov. You can also follow what I’m doing 24/7 on Facebook at www.facebook.com/repfrankguinta and on Twitter at @RepFrankGuinta.