Despite having no budget resolution and discretionary spending levels, the House and Senate Appropriations committees have decided to move forward with crafting draft bills.
Lawmakers of both parties and in both chambers have predicted the need for another stopgap measure to extend current funding levels when FY 2018 begins on October 1, 2017.
must have some sort of spending package ready to avoid a government shutdown. Additionally, writing detailed spending bills that fund lots of popular programs is easier than navigating the treacherous politics involved in constructing a bipartisan deal over spending limits.
That said, the House and Senate are taking different approaches to crafting their bills.
On Monday, the House Appropriations Committee has released its version of the FY2018 Military Construction – VA appropriations bill. The first of the 12 annual spending bills Monday night — a popular measure funding the Department of Veterans Affairs and construction projects at military bases. The $88.8 billion measure is $6 billion over FY2017 levels, despite FY2018 sequester levels being less than FY2017 levels. It is unclear where the $88.8 billion figure came from. The House Appropriations Committee is expected to vote on the measure as soon as Thursday and more bills are expected to be released soon.
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If no new budget deal is cut, the House and Senate are confined to the levels set by the 2011 deficit-cutting law, the Budget Control Act (BCA), which is also known as the Sequester. That law would require cutting about $5 billion from the agreement reached to set FY2017 levels.