Fight Over Policy Riders May Shut Down Government
Apr 6, 2011 by Matthew Madia
The battle over a handful of conservative policy priorities has pushed the federal government to the precipice of a shut down.
read in fullFederal Spending Anxiety to Shut Off Spending Info Website
Apr 1, 2011 by Craig Jennings
At a time when federal spending is the top concern of everyone in Washington, Congress is about to turn off the federal website that tells us where those federal funds are going.
FY '11 Savings Lost to Continuing Budget Fight
Mar 18, 2011 by Craig Jennings
Although congressional combatants believe they are fighting a worthy budget battle, the collateral damage of not coming to agreement is accumulating. Robert Pear at the New York Times and Andy Sullivan at Reuters have reported two noteworthy pieces suggesting that when Congress finally gets its FY 2011 act together, the savings from whatever budget cuts result will significantly eroded by the waste that their dithering has caused.
Why Are We Only Talking about Spending Cuts?
Mar 15, 2011 by Gary Therkildsen*
With Congress poised to send President Obama another continuing resolution (CR) temporarily keeping the federal government open, Senate Democrats, in conjunction with the administration, have just three weeks to negotiate with House Republicans over a funding bill for the rest of fiscal year (FY) 2011. The negotiations will concentrate on spending cuts made by the Republican House, but they shouldn't.
read in fullHouse CR Would Cut Nuclear Safety Funding
Mar 15, 2011 by Craig Jennings
H.R. 1, the continuing resolution (CR) passed by the House in February that would cut some $61 billion from FY 2010 levels for the remainder of FY 2011 is no friend of nuclear safety. A rundown of the bill reveals the following cuts:
read in fullSpecial Interest Wish List Goes Along for the Ride on House CR
Mar 9, 2011 by Craig Jennings
In the early hours of Saturday, Feb. 19, the House of Representatives passed a budget plan to continue funding the operations of the federal government for the remaining seven months of fiscal year (FY) 2011. In addition to $65.5 billion in cuts to discretionary spending, the bill (H.R.
read in fullShutdown Averted; Next One Looms
Mar 2, 2011 by Craig Jennings
Voting 91-9 on H.J. Res. 44, the Senate postponed the threat of a government shutdown for two weeks.
read in fullBlame Will Avert a Government Shutdown
Feb 25, 2011 by Craig Jennings
Unless Congress comes to an agreement over current fiscal year funding soon-- and one acceptable to President Obama -- many operations of the federal government will shut down after March 4. Although what exactly will be shutdown remains uncertain, it's likely the public will notice and be inconvenienced while hundreds of thousands of federal employees will be furloughed. In short, it would be a huge mess and someone will have to take the rap.
read in fullHouse Budget: More Exemptions and Lower Payments for Big Oil
Feb 23, 2011 by Matthew Madia
In the latest issue of The Watcher, OMB Watch discusses (here and here) the recently passed House budget and the many non-budget provisions attached to it, including the anti-environmental riders that prevent the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other agencies from doing this or that.
read in fullA Government Shut Down, One Way or the Other
Feb 18, 2011 by Matthew Madia
The 2011 budget has turned into a game of hot potato. With a short-term extension of the current budget increasingly unlikely, it appears as though those holding the decisionmaking authority on March 4 at 11:59 pm, when the current continuing resolution expires, will be forced to make an unpopular decision: passing draconian Republican cuts or forcing the government to shut down.
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