Washington- Rep. Joe Pitts (PA-16) joined 18 Republicans on a letter calling for a one-year moratorium on earmark requests for Republican members. The letter, which is expected to gain additional signatures as Members return to Washington, calls for an immediate Republican Conference meeting to discuss the moratorium.

“Out of control earmarks are a symptom of our larger inability to balance the federal budget and we cannot wait any longer to control spending,” say Rep. Pitts. “We need to come together as a conference and take a stand for fiscal responsibility.”

Rep. Pitts has a history of standing against out of control spending, voting against one-third of appropriations bills when Republicans controlled Congress because they spent too much. Rep. Pitts has not requested earmarks since 2007.

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