Spotlight on the Line Item Veto Act

On April 27, the Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on the Constitution held an oversight hearing on the Line Item Veto Act of 2006. Christina Martin Firvida, Senior Counsel at the National Women's Law Center, testified the bill would give the President unprecedented power to suspend, and effectively cancel, provisions of law enacted by Congress, even after Congress has rejected the President's rescission proposal. The expanded rescission power would apply not only to appropriations, currently subject to a more limited rescission authority, but also to direct spending for programs upon which millions of Americans rely. The rest of her testimony is available here. The Senate Budget Committee will hold hearings on the line-item veto this week, and Congress is expected to act on the issue this summer.
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