As a small-business owner, I have a unique appreciation for tightening budgets. You’re far more likely to find me advocating for ways to shrink government involvement in our lives, than increasing it.
However, I do believe there are certain issues that absolutely require the attention of our elected officials, including and especially on issues of national security. And these days, that includes election security. While Congress invested around $400 million annually for election security during the Trump administration, it seems as if this critical priority has fallen to the wayside in recent years.
Congress allocated just $55 million in fiscal year 2024, and it looks like nothing at all is suggested for fiscal year 2025, a far cry from the previous levels that lawmakers appropriated for this very same issue during the previous administration.
I believe it is worthwhile to take a hard look at some of the less pressing items receiving immense sums of taxpayer dollars. In doing so, there is certainly room to reprioritize funding and accommodate the investment in our election infrastructure.
Ultimately, there is more than enough funding that can be repurposed from existing allocations to go toward an actual national security issue like defending our election system from foreign adversary cyberthreats. I hope Louisiana’s leadership in Congress will take this into consideration as the appropriations process continues.
BOBBY HOYT
head brewer/owner, Gilla Brewing