Omnibus Appropriations

FY 2003 Appropriations Coming to a Close -- Finally

On January 23, on a vote of 69-29, the Senate passed H.J. Res. 2, a $390 billion omnibus appropriations bill in an effort to begin bringing the FY 2003 appropriations season to a close. Since Congress was unable to resolve its budgeting differences last fall during its election fervor, this bill combines into one large bill the 11 appropriations bills that were not completed before Congress adjourned in December. (The timeline for this appropriations bill was so rushed, in fact, that Senate and House Republicans agreed to completely bypass the House, which has the authority to originate all spending bills, and allow the Senate to begin action on the omnibus spending bill.)

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Continuing Resolution, Take 8

Last week the House and Senate Passed, and the President signed the eighth continuing resolution (CR) of the FY 2003 budget season. This CR will keep the federal government and the programs it funds going through January 31, 2003. Without the CR, there would be no funding for these programs and the government would be forced to shut down – an option no one wanted to serve as the opening to the 108th Congress last week. As discussed in previous issues of the Watcher, there are many problems for agencies trying to operate under a stream of CR’s, which only continue last year’s funding levels, with no increase for inflation. There is hope that this will be the last CR necessary for FY 2003, as many in Congress want to complete work on the remaining 11 appropriations bills by combining them into an omnibus appropriations bill – to allow them to move on to the FY 2004 budget.

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Economic Stimulus ? First, Do No Harm

An economic stimulus plan will be on the table early in the next Congress. Following is the tentative schedule. Given the sudden change in Senate leadership with Sen. Trent Lott’s (R-MS) resignation as Senate Majority Leader, there is a great deal of uncertainty about how the budget process will proceed next year, including issues of timing, number of reconciliation bills, and content. The next Watcher may contain a very different timetable.

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Budget Schedule

The incoming Director of Budget and Appropriations Issues for Sen. Trent Lott (R-MS), G. William Hoagland, recently gave a briefing to states about the upcoming budget. Included in this piece are some points from that briefing and other reports, as well as a tentative schedule for completing work on the FY 2003 budget and beginning the FY 2004 budget work.

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