Opinion: Federal Government Should be Forced to Balance Budget

As I sit down to write this article, each United States citizen will have to pay $52,399 to pay off the U.S. national debt. The debt applies to every citizen, whether it be single mothers, fathers, elderly citizens, even children, as it is every citizen’s debt to bear, whether we asked for it or not.Many states have tried to petition for a convention to discuss the matter of a required balanced budget and possibly come up with new solutions, but these attempts have failed. Thirty-two states petitioned to Congress, meaning if just two more petitioned, a convention would be held on the matter. But would just balancing the budget be enough? Or should we rethink the original plan in order to make it well suited for the country and its citizens?Balancing the budget obviously has its benefits. It ensures that the United States doesn’t rack up huge national debt (like $16 trillion), spend money it doesn’t have or allocate money carelessly to institutions or things the American people don’t necessarily care about. It could also cause the government serious strife. If our budgeting process continues on the path it has, it is likely that Congress won’t be able to decide on the budget allocation, let alone make it balanced.My taxpayer dollars are being spent here, and I believe I have a better solution.I believe that the budget should be balanced each fiscal year, but it could, as mentioned previously, contribute to political polarization and could easily cause a virtual stalemate in Congress. I believe that the United States should pass a measure to keep the budget within a certain percentage (whether it be over or under the budget allotment). This could slow government spending and the growth of the national debt, get discussion off of the act of balancing the budget and put more discussion on fiscal responsibility.Ohio passed a measure to balance its budget, and it hasn’t come without its hardships, but it was certainly, in my opinion, responsible legislation. After all, it is our tax money, why not claim some power over the way it is spent?