April 10, 2013
President Obama will release his FY14 budget request today. Early reports indicate that the budget will focus on “education and infrastructure” issues, propose new taxes on the wealthy, and reduce the costs of Social Security and Medicare. We will report more details after the release.
April 8, 2013
Congress reconvenes this week after a two-week recess. Congress will be looking at the President’s Budget Request, and also wrestling with the debt ceiling, which is expected to expire yet again, this time in mid May. Also on the agenda this week (and through the month of April): immigration reform, gun control/safety, and FY14 appropriations…. Read More
March 28, 2013
The White House has just announced that President Obama will release his budget on April 10th, nearly two months later than the traditional February release date. The President had been expected to release his budget on April 8th, the same day that Congress returns from its two-week recess period. The White House has said that… Read More
March 25, 2013
The month of March has been a busy one in Washington, D.C. On March 1st sequestration went into effect after Congress failed to come to agreement on long-term deficit reduction, and last week both the House and Senate approved their respective budget resolutions that address overall spending for federal government for FY 2014. And, finally, Congress… Read More
March 23, 2013
Early this morning, the Senate passed its first budget in four years by a vote of 50 to 49 after a marathon session that began Friday morning and included 562 filed amendments. The Senate approved a budget resolution that relies heavily on $975 billion in new tax revenue to stabilize the growth of the national… Read More
March 21, 2013
One of the notable provisions included in the year long CR (HR 933) was the restoration to Tuition Assistance (TA) programs for active duty service members. Previously this month, the Army and the Marine Corps decided not to continue their respective TA programs after March 8, 2013 because of cuts from the sequester. An amendment offered… Read More
March 21, 2013
Yesterday, the Senate passed HR 933, a continuing resolution to fund federal government for the remainder of FY 2013. That bill now moves back to the House for final approval, which should take place today before being sent to the President for signature. While the CR does not eliminate sequestration, it does provide some federal… Read More
March 20, 2013
The Senate is still struggling to get the FY 2013 continuing resolution (CR) approved, which now looks like it may happen on Thursday. That will leave little time to consider the FY 2014 budget resolution. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has said that he is planning to keep members in session until they complete… Read More
March 18, 2013
Congress has a busy schedule this week before they leave town for their two-week Easter recess. On the agenda are the continuing resolution (CR) and dueling House and Senate budget proposals. The Senate resumes consideration of the CR to fund the federal government for the rest of FY 2013. With some 90 amendments filed, they… Read More
March 12, 2013
One of the first causalities of the the federal Sequester is the Tuition Assistance (TA) program provided by the Army and Marine Corps. Following the Marines Corps lead, the Army announced on Friday, March 8th that soldiers will not be allowed to enroll in TA-funded courses after the day of the annoucement. The Marines announced on… Read More
