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Wilson Pledges No Earmark Requests

March 11, 2008
Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 11, 2008

CONTACT: Ryan Murphy
(202) 225-2452 (Office)
(202) 689-4825 (Cell)

Congressman Joe Wilson (SC-02) announced today that he will not seek earmark requests in any Fiscal Year 2009 appropriations bills.

"The American people are fed up with a Washington that fails to respect the taxpayer's wallet," said Wilson. "There remains no single set of standards to which all members of Congress abide by when requesting funding for local projects. This has led to a process that is broken and wasteful. Therefore, I see no choice but to enact an immediate one-year moratorium on all earmark requests from my office. I am proud to stand with many of my colleagues in supporting this call for a moratorium and ultimately the establishment of a truly transparent and accountable system that provides a set standard for everyone in Congress to follow, where all earmarks are publicly disclosed to the American people."

NOTE: Last year, Congressman Wilson publically disclosed all earmark requests made in Fiscal Year 2008 to his constituents. This year, he has cosponsored H.Con.Res. 263, which would create a Joint Select Committee on Earmark Reform, provide a report to Congress on the practices of earmarks, and calls for a moratorium on earmarks until the report is presented to Congress.

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