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Category: Appropriations

More Cabinet Posts, FY 2018 Budget Update

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It will continue to be a busy week for the House and Senate. Today, the Senate will continue to work on confirmations as four Cabinet positions – Betsy DeVos for Secretary of Education, Senator Jeff Sessions for Attorney General, Rep. Tom Price for Secretary of HHS, and Steven Mnuchin for Secretary of Treasury  – are up for full Senate consideration this week. Rep. Mike Mulvany (R-SC), Trump’s nominee to lead the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), is still working his way through the Senate, which could cause some budget complications for FY 2018 (see below). 

Senators are expected to move on a House-passed Congressional Review Act resolution nullifying a regulation curbing methane emissions from oil and gas wells on federal lands. Once passed, it will mark the third energy-related rule nullified by the Republican Congress. 

Today, the House continues efforts to stop regulations finalized by former President Barack Obama now focusing on the Department of Education. So far, lawmakers have introduced Congressional Review Act resolutions targeting the Obama Administration’s regulations governing teacher preparation programs as well as its accountability rule under the Every Student Succeeds Act.

It is the first Monday in February, which is technically Presidential Budget day. On the first Monday in February, the Administration is statutorily required to submit their budget request for the upcoming fiscal year (in this case FY 2018) to Congress. All recent Presidents (including Obama…multiple times) have missed the statutory deadline for budget submissions in their first year in office. There is no penalty for missing the date and a full budget proposal may not emerge from the White House until April or May.

While a delay in the budget submission is expected for a new Administration, virtually guarantees a delay in the entire FY 2018 appropriations process. Regardless of who controls Congress, lawmakers typically fail to get regular spending bills passed before the start of the new fiscal year, which begins on October 1. This year enjoys the particular complication of not having closed out FY 2017 with the current CR running until April 28th. Congress will have to address FY 2017 and immediately (or concurrently) FY 2018. 

 

Pentagon to Revise FY2017 Budget Request

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The Department of Defense is preparing changes to its budget request for this current fiscal year (FY2017). In a memo, Secretary Mattis states that the department will seek changes to its original request, to address shortfalls in warfighting readiness and the accelerated campaign against ISIS. The new request will lead to a higher overall request for the agency for FY2017 and will likely lead to decreases or smaller increases in “lower priority” programs. It is unclear whether research programs will be impacted by the revised budget. The new request will be submitted by March 1.

The same memo states that the FY2018 budget request will be delivered by May 1 and will focus on “balancing the program, addressing pressing programmatic shortfalls, while continuing to build readiness.” Finally, a five-year plan (FY2019-2023) for the Pentagon will seek to push reforms, including horizontal integration across the agency.

Senate Appropriations Subcommittee Leadership for 115th

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This week the Senate Appropriations Committee finalized its subcommittee rosters and leadership. Senator Patty Murray will serve as Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education in addition to serving on the Subcommittees for Defense; Energy and Water Development; Homeland Security; Military Construction and Veterans’ Affairs; and Transportation, Housing and Urban Development. A full roster is listed below.

Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies

 John Hoeven (R-N.D.), chairman

Thad Cochran (R-Miss.)

Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)

Susan Collins (R-Maine)

Roy Blunt (R-Mo.)

Jerry Moran (R-Kan.)

Marco Rubio (R-Fla.)

 

Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), ranking member

Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)

John Tester (D-Mont.)

Tom Udall (D-N.M.)

Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.)

Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.)

 

 Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies

Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), chairman

Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.)

Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska)

Susan Collins (R-Maine)

Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)

John Boozman (R-Ark.)

Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.)

James Lankford (R-Okla.)

John Kennedy (R-La.)

 

Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), ranking member

Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.)

Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)

Jack Reed (D-R.I.)

Chris Coons (D-Del.)

Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii)

Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.)

Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.)

 

 Department of Defense

Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), chairman

Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)

Richard Shelby (R-Ala.)

Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.)

Susan Collins (R-Maine)

Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska)

Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)

Roy Blunt (R-Mo.)

Steve Daines (R-Mont.)

Jerry Moran (R-Kan.)

 

Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), vice chairman

Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.)

Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)

Patty Murray (D-Wash.)

Jack Reed (D-R.I.)

Jon Tester (D-Mont.)

Tom Udall (D-N.M.)

Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii)

Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.)

 

Energy and Water Development

 Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), chairman

Thad Cochran (R-Miss.)

Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)

Richard Shelby (R-Ala.)

Susan Collins (R-Maine)

Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska)

Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)

John Hoeven (R-N.D.)

John Kennedy (R-La.)

 

Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), ranking member

Patty Murray (D-Wash.)

Jon Tester (D-Mont.)

Richard Durbin (D-Ill.)

Tom Udall (D-N.M.)

Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)

Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.)

Chris Coons (D-Del.)

 

Financial Services and General Government

 Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), chairman

Jerry Moran (R-Kan.)

John Boozman (R-Ark.)

James Lankford (R-Okla.)

Steve Daines (R-Mont.)

 

Chris Coons (D-Del.), ranking member

Richard Durbin (D-Ill.)

Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.)

Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.)

 

Department of Homeland Security

 John Boozman (R-Ark.), chairman

Thad Cochran (R-Miss.)

Richard Shelby (R-Ala.)

Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska)

John Hoeven (R-N.D.)

James Lankford (R-Okla.)

John Kennedy (R-La.)

 

Jon Tester (D-Mont.), ranking member

Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)

Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.)

Patty Murray (D-Wash.)

Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.)

Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.)

 

Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies

Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), chairman

Thad Cochran (R-Miss.)

Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.)

Roy Blunt (R-Mo.)

John Hoeven (R-N.D.)

Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)

Steve Daines (R-Mont.)

Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.)

 

Tom Udall (D-N.M.), ranking member

Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)

Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.)

Jack Reed (D-R.I.)

Jon Tester (D-Mont.)

Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.)

Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.)

 

Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies

Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), chairman

Thad Cochran (R-Miss.)

Richard Shelby (R-Ala.)

Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.)

Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)

Jerry Moran (R-Kan.)

Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.)

James Lankford (R-Okla.)

John Kennedy (R-La.)

Marco Rubio (R-Fla.)

 

Patty Murray (D-Wash.), ranking member

Richard Durbin (D-Ill.)

Jack Reed (D-R.I.)

Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)

Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.)

Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii)

Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.)

Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)

Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.)

 

Legislative Branch

James Lankford (R-Okla.), chairman

John Kennedy (R-La.)

Marco Rubio (R-Fla.)

 

Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), ranking member

Chris Van Hollen (D-Hawaii)

 

Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies

Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), chairman

Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)

Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska)

John Hoeven (R-N.D.)

Susan Collins (R-Maine)

John Boozman (R-Ark.)

Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.)

Marco Rubio (R-Fla.)

 

Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), ranking member

Jon Tester (D-Mont.)

Patty Murray (D-Wash.)

Jack Reed (D-R.I.)

Tom Udall (D-N.M.)

Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.)

Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)

 

State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs

Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), chairman

Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)

Roy Blunt (R-Mo.)

John Boozman (R-Ark.)

Jerry Moran (R-Kan.)

James Lankford (R-Okla.)

Steve Daines (R-Mont.)

Marco Rubio (R-Fla.)

 

Patrick Leahy (R-Vt.), ranking member

Richard Durbin (D-Ill.)

Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)

Chris Coons (D-Del.)

Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.)

Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)

Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.)

 

Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies

Susan Collins (R-Maine), chairman

Richard Shelby (R-Ala.)

Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.)

Roy Blunt (R-Mo.)

John Boozman (R-Ark.)

Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.)

Steve Daines (R-Mont.)

Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)

John Hoeven (R-N.D.)

 

Jack Reed (D-R.I.), ranking member

Patty Murray (D-Wash.)

Richard Durbin (D-Ill.)

Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)

Chris Coons (D-Del.)

Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii)

Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)

Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.)

CR Passes, Happy Holidays!

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In a late Friday night vote, the Senate passed the Continuing Resolution (CR) to fund the government through April 28, 2017 by a vote of 62-34. The House passed the measure earlier in the week, and with the Senate’s passage, a government shutdown has been averted.

There was much uncertainty thrown into the CR at the last minute with Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) trying to halt the measure due to the lack of a full year’s extension of retired coal miners’ health benefits. Manchin was threatening to filibuster or convince 40 Senate Democrats to vote against cloture on the measure. That effort failed and the Senate passed cloture on Thursday. That vote added a new wrinkle in that cloture guarantees 30 hours of debate on legislation, and if the Senate Democrats were to exhaust the full 30 hours, then the Senate vote would not occur until 1 am on Saturday, December 10th, a full hour after the CR had expired.

Rather than risk that scenario, the Senate  ended debate earlier, proceeded with, and passed the measure at 11 pm on Friday. It should be noted that the House recessed Thursday, and most House Members were back in the district, with little intention of returning, on Friday.

President Barack Obama is expected to sign the CR. 

The stopgap measure, which took immediate effect, extends current funding levels for most federal agencies and abides by an annual cap on discretionary spending of $1.07 trillion for FY2017. It also provides extra money for military operations, flood relief, medical research and the effort to repair the lead-contaminated water system of Flint, MI.

With that, the House and Senate are expected to recess Sine Die in the coming week. They will convene in the 115th Congress.

CR Released, Should Pass This Week

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The continuing resolution (CR) was released late last night. The text of the legislation is here. The big news is that the CR will fund the federal government through April 28, 2017. The legislation maintains the current budget cap level of $1.07 trillion put into place under the Budget Control Act of 2011, which results in an across the board cut of .1901%.

The House is expected to vote on the measure on Thursday and the Senate is expected to follow suit on Friday. 

Big Items of Note: 

The Defense Overseas Contingency Fund, which is not subject to budget caps, was increased by $8 billion in response to the Administration’s request to combat ISIS. Of note, the Administration asked for $11.6 billion.  The CR increase does include RDT&E funding that is related to the Global War on Terrorism and the Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Fund received a $87M increase.  The funding will go to both defense-specific funding to combat ISIS as well as non-military spending — such as Humanitarian Assistance, State Department and USAID operations funding, Economic and Stabilization Assistance, and Embassy security funding — to combat ISIS. 

The CR does add funding in FY 2017 to accounts created and highlighted in the Cures bill for opioids, NIH and FDA initiatives, and Flint drinking water. The Cures funding is fully offset per the authorizing bill. Specifically, the totals for the year amount to: 

  • $500 million in grants to states to fight opioid abuse, 
  • $352 for the new NIH Innovations Fund (as created by Cures), 
  • $20 million directed to the FDA Innovation account (as created by cures), and  
  • $50 million is directed to HHS to address health issues relating to a lead-tainted drinking water system in Michigan. 

There is a provision to address President-elect Trump’s Secretary of Defense nominee, Ret. USMC Gen. James. Mattis, who left service three years ago. Under a 1947 federal statute, Secretaries of Defense must be civilians or retired from service for at least 7 years to be eligible to serve; its an effort to assure civilian control of the military. This requirement has been waived once in 1950 for General George C. Marshall. 

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Other Items of Note:

There is additional funding to allow continued operations and data collection for continuation of data for weather warnings, including forecasts of severe weather events from NOAA’s Joint Polar Satellite System.

There is a provision allowing additional funding, if needed, for the housing and care of Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC) after February 1, 2017. The number of UACs has been spiking as of late and was an issue for the FY2017 appropriations cycle. Of note, this funding comes from the Labor-H appropriations bill. 

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Additional updates will be posted on our blog.