LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY

House Will Take Up FY 2015 Budget Resolution

Confident they have a sufficient number of Republican votes, House leaders will bring Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan’s (R-WI) FY 2015 Budget Resolution (H. Con. Res. 96) to a floor vote this week.

The resolution maintains the $1.014 trillion FY 2015 discretionary spending cap established in the Bipartisan Budget Act (P.L. 113-67). Chairman Ryan also keeps the separate caps set for defense ($521 billion) and non-defense ($492 billion) programs in FY 2015, but proposes a subsequent shift of approximately $50 billion per year from domestic to defense spending. The resolution also provides $5.1 trillion in federal spending reductions over the next 10 years, achieved through a variety of strategies previously proposed by Republicans: the repeal of Obamacare; the elimination of the Social Services Block Grant; the conversion of Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as food stamps) into block grants; and the future transition of Medicare into a voucher program.

The House will also take up two additional budget-related bills this week: the Baseline Reform Act of 2013 (H.R. 1871) which would eliminate the baseline assumption of annual inflationary adjustments for discretionary spending; and the Budget and Accounting Transparency Act of 2014 (H.R. 1872) which would account for the costs of market risks in federal credit programs. On Friday, the House passed the Pro-Growth Budgeting Act of 2013 (H.R. 1874) which would require dynamic scoring for major legislation.

It is very unlikely the Senate will consider any of these bills.

Appropriators Strive For Regular Order

The House Appropriations Committee will take up its first two FY 2015 spending bills this week, working under Chair Hal Rogers (R-KY) timeline of passing all 12 appropriations bills out of the committee before the July Fourth recess. The committee will take up the least controversial measures, the Legislative Branch and Military Construction-Veterans Affairs bills on Wednesday.

House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees will also continue FY 2015 Budget hearings this week.

This week’s hearings

Senate Appropriations Committee FY 2015 Budget Hearings

  • Tuesday, April 8: The State-Foreign Operations Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for USAID.
  • Tuesday, April 8: The Legislative Branch Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget requests for the Architect of the Capitol, the Library of Congress, and the Open World Leadership Center.
  • Wednesday, April 9: The Interior-Environment Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
  • Wednesday, April 9: The Labor-HHS-Education Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for the Department of Labor.
  • Wednesday, April 9: The Defense Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for Defense Health Programs.
  • Wednesday, April 9: The Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget requests for the Navy and Air Force.
  • Wednesday, April 9: The Energy and Water Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for the Department of Energy.
  • Thursday, April 10: The Commerce, Justice Science Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget bequest for the Department of Commerce.

House Appropriations Committee FY 2015 Budget Hearings

  • Monday, April 7: The Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
  • Tuesday, April 8: The Commerce, Justice, Science Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for NASA.
  • Tuesday, April 8: The Agriculture Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for the Department of Agriculture Field Agencies.
  • Tuesday, April 8: The Defense Subcommittee will hold a CLOSED hearing on the budget request for the United States Africa Command.
  • Tuesday, April 8: The Energy and Water Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for the Department of Energy (Environmental Management).
  • Tuesday, April 8: The Labor-HHS-Education Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for the Department of Education.
  • Tuesday, April 8: The Homeland Security Subcommittee will hold a CLOSED hearing on the budget request for cybersecurity.
  • Tuesday, April 8: The State-Foreign Operations Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for USAID.
  • Tuesday, April 8: The Defense Subcommittee will hold a CLOSED MEMBERS ONLY hearing on the budget request for the United States Special Forces Command.
  • Tuesday, April 8: The Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for the General Services Administration (GSA).
  • Wednesday, April 9: The Commerce, Justice, Science Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for the Department of Commerce.
  • Wednesday, April 9: The Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
  • Thursday, April 10: The Commerce, Justice, Science Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for the Bureau of Prisons.
  • Thursday, April 10: The Defense Subcommittee will hold a CLOSED MEMBERS ONLY hearing on the budget request for the Intelligence Community.
  • Thursday, April 10: The Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the budget request for the Department of Housing and Urban Development.