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The Continuing Resolution saga continues. Last week, the Senate rejected both the House and the Senate Appropriations Committee versions of a bill to fund the government for the rest of Fiscal Year 2011.
On March 9, the Senate rejected the House-passed Continuing Resolution that would have cut the President’s budget by $100 billion by a vote of 44 – 56 and a Senate Appropriations Committee version that would cut $51 billion from the President’s request by a vote of 42 – 58.
On Friday, March 11, the House Appropriations Committee proposed another short-term Continuing Resolution to fund the government until April 8.
The House is expected to vote on the bill on March 15 — beware of the ides of March. The Senate should vote later this week.
Both houses of Congress are in recess next week.
Sporadic negotiations continue on a funding bill for the rest of the year.
The Senate Appropriations Committee bill rejected by the Senate had proposed to restore about $300 million for the nuclear non-proliferation program, still a reduction of about $360 million from the Administration’s request compared to a $648 million cut in the House bill.
With that budget rejected, the account is still being funded at $2.1 billion in the Continuing Resolution, about $550 million less that the Administration request while funding for nuclear complex modernization remains at the Administration-requested level of $7 billion.
It is important to focus on a few numbers:
$2.1 billion – spending level for “Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation” since the beginning of Fiscal Year 2011 that began on October 1, 2010.
$551 billion less than the Administration’s request for Fiscal Year 2011
$7.0 billion – spending level for “National Nuclear Security Administration – Weapons Activities” (Nuclear complex modernization)
$624 million above the Fiscal Year 2010 level
The $2.3 billion level for “Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation” proposed by the Senate Appropriations Committee has not been adopted by the Senate or approved by the House.
Click here for a complete chart of the confusing funding figures by the incomparable Kingston Reif.
