Moolenaar-sponsored bill revokes unobligated funds from American Rescue Plan Act

U.S. Rep. John Moolenaar (R-MI) recently sponsored legislation that would repeal the unobligated balance of appropriations made by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 and instead use the funds to pay down the federal debt.

“The pandemic is over — President Biden said so himself — and yet there are still unspent funds sitting at federal departments that he said were needed for the pandemic response,” Rep. Moolenaar said. “It is time to direct those funds back to the Treasury and pay down the debt.”

The congressman introduced the Saving Taxpayers’ Money and Paying America’s Debt Act, H.R. 564, to rescind the unobligated balance of amounts made available by the American Rescue Plan Act and deposit them into the general fund of the U.S. Treasury Department “for the sole purpose of deficit reduction,” according to the bill’s text.

“The trillions Biden has already spent in just two years has helped drive inflation to 40-year highs,” said Rep. Moolenaar. “My legislation will help rein in inflation that is hurting Michigan families and stop Biden from spending even more.”

Signed into law in March 2021, the American Rescue Plan Act still has some of its approved funding available because federal departments haven’t used their allotted amounts, according to Rep. Moolenaar, who on Feb. 26, 2021, voted against the measure.