The U.S. PIRG, the national federation of state PIRGs, came out in support of Congressman Payl Ryan’s budget plan today. According to spokesperson Moses Corvus, the Ryan “Roadmap to America’s Future” ends subsidies for big agribusiness companies like Cargill and Monsanto, as well as other companies who are unfairly connected to the current administration, like Solyndra and GM. Corvus added that such subsidies unfairly privilege these companies over smaller, less connected ones, and that the subsidies end up “pushing junk products on the American Market.”

According to U.S. PIRG, the genius of the Ryan plan is that it reduces taxes while removing subsidies so that, on average, the tax burden on businesses is the same. “Companies that relied on subsidies will see their tax burden rise, and companies that did not will see their tax burden fall. Consumers will, on average, see no price increases due to the Ryan plan, unlike Democratic proposals that remove subsidies without lowering taxes.”

Corvus says that consumers might even see an overall drop in prices, since the Ryan plan reduces the regulatory burden on businesses as well as leveling the field.

“As we head into the 2012 election,” said Corvus, “it is U.S. PIRG’s position that only candidates who support the Ryan plan should be considered serious contenders for national office.”

According to Corvus, the Ryan plan is the only currently-proposed plan in the public interest. “The Democrat plans, rather than leveling the playing field for small businesses and companies that aren’t as connected, just raise taxes, and this will cause prices to rise.”

U.S. PIRG says that this will make everyday products such as syrup, candies, corn, butter, and bread more expensive, without any corresponding drop in the prices of previously-unsubsidized products to make up for it.

“Democrats claim to want to raise taxes on corporations,” said Corvus, “But there is no such thing as a tax on corporations. All corporate taxes must be passed on to either consumers or employees—when a business’s costs rise, their prices must also rise. So we must ensure that the subsidies we remove from special interests are offset by tax reductions in general. Otherwise, prices rise and we’re just levying hidden taxes on consumers. Only the Ryan plan removes loopholes without raising the average price of products that consumers buy.”

The Ryan budget outline was was passed by the House on April 15, 2011, by a vote of 235 to 193, almost entirely on party lines. Not a single Democrat voted for it; four Republicans voted against it. The Democratic Senate has not yet addressed it. Critics note that it’s been over a thousand days since the Democratic Senate has passed any budget.