Whitehouse to Take on Senate Budget Committee Gavel for 118th Congress.
U.S. SENATOR SHELDON WHITEHOUSE
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) today announced that he will step into the role of Chairman of the U.S. Senate Budget Committee for the 118th Congress.
“I very much look forward to taking the helm,” said Whitehouse. “Together with the members of the Committee, we will examine a range of subjects that have enormous consequences for American families, the economy, and the federal budget. Chief among these is climate change, as economic experts warn of serious financial risks and as climate-related disaster spending continues to soar.
We’ve got a planet seriously in trouble because of the unbridled mischief of the fossil fuel industry, we’ve got runaway economic inequality, and we’ve got a health care system that too often does not work for patients.
There’s a lot of work to be done, and we are ready to hit the ground running to make the budget process and the entirety of the federal government work better for hardworking Rhode Islanders, grow the middle class, and lead the planet to safety.”
The Budget Committee was created by the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974. The Committee may hold hearings on a broad spectrum of issues related to the performance of government agencies and the economy.
Whitehouse takes the top spot at the Budget Committee as Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) vacates the position to helm the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee.