Exclusive — Rep. Louie Gohmert to Propose Two-Year Ban on Construction of New Federal Buildings in D.C.

Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) is expected to introduce new legislation on Thursday which would ban construction on new federal buildings in Washington, D.C. for two years to combat “obnoxious” and “bloated” spending.

The legislation is called the “Stop Wasting our Money on Palaces (SWAMP) Act, and would reportedly cut down on frivolous federal government building projects in the nation’s capital which are of no use to taxpayers whatsoever.

“Our federal bureaucracy is so bloated that we have an estimated 120,000 to 400,000 buildings nationwide. Federal bureaucrats have no real idea how many buildings the American people own, and that is obnoxious—it is unacceptable. Congress has a duty to reign this in,” Gohmert said in a statement obtained exclusively by Breitbart News.

Gohmert slammed President Joe Biden’s inflation crisis and juxtaposed the federal government’s rampant spending to Americans across the country who are cutting costs to help cover the “drastic rise in prices on essentials such as gasoline and basic food items.”

“Families facing this budget crunch must make hard choices, and it is well past time for Congress to do the same. We must address wasteful federal spending and our budget deficits. The Democrats’ desire to raise taxes is not the answer but will make matters worse,” he continued. 

The congressman said the SWAMP Act is a “commonsense proposal” which would base federal agencies in the areas where most of their work is located.

“There is no viable reason these agencies need to be based in Washington. They could easily be moved to areas that are more cost-efficient and closer to their work,” he said. 

He cited the Department of Agriculture as an example, saying it should be located in America’s heartland, near the farming areas the agency was made to serve. He also mentioned the Department of Energy, noting that it should exist close to states where energy is actually created.

“Centralizing these agencies in the Federal City does nothing but aid corruption, bloat the federal bureaucrac,y and enrich lobbyists,” he said. “If some of these agencies are going to exist at all, they should be out in the communities they serve.”