Chris Stewart: Spending bill process needs to be reformed

Rep. Chris Stewart said Thursday that the spending bill process needs to be reformed to hold lawmakers more accountable.

“It’s extraordinarily frustrating that when we’ve worked so hard for months and yet we don’t seem to have input on the final product,” Mr. Stewart, Utah Republican, said on CNN.

He said the practice of trying to pass a funding agreement only seems to end up with multiple short-term deals that put Congress up against multiple deadlines. The current deal is set to expire on Friday if the current $1.3 trillion agreement isn’t passed.

“We can’t keep doing the same thing and expect any kind of different results,” Mr. Stewart said.

He said the frustration with the process is shared by those on both sides of the political aisle, and reform for the process is a universal issue.

“Across the aisle, the Democrats are frustrated by this. I know that my party is,” he said.

Conservatives have already said that they are unhappy with the funding for Planned Parenthood in the current bill and that it’s too costly for taxpayers.