PETITION: EMERSON WORKS TOWARD BALANCED BUDGET ACCORD

WASHINGTON -- Rep. Bill Emerson says he will be in line early today to sign a petition that will hasten a balanced budget amendment to a vote in the U.S. House.

Emerson, R-Cape Girardeau, plans to include his name on a "discharge petition," which is a little-used procedural effort to force a vote on the House floor.

The Missouri congressman has been a long-time proponent of the balanced budget amendment and believes the measure is gathering momentum.

"This is the last resort in disciplining Congress' attitudes toward the federal budget," said Emerson.

By gathering enough signatures on the petition, amendment backers can prevent House liberals from burying the measure in a committee, the congressman noted.

"It forces a vote on the proposal," he said. "With passage of this constitutional amendment, we can put an enforcement mechanism in place so that those liberals in Congress can wean themselves from ridiculous tax-and-spend habits."

If the petition collects enough signatures, the amendment would be brought to the House floor on June 8 or June 10.

Emerson said: "Although a constitutional amendment is no substitute for direct action on the part of Congress, it does send a strong signal we're heading in the right direction."

The Missouri representative said the amendment is similar to a bill he introduced on his first day in Congress in 1981.