HOUSE INTRODUCES FY 2007 FUNDING BILL

Source: Fednews-online

The House Appropriations Committee yesterday introduced a $463.5 billion spending bill that would fund most federal agencies through the end of the fiscal year.

Congress must approve the joint funding resolution, which consolidates 9 of the 11 spending bills from the 109th Congress, before the current continuing resolution expires Feb. 15 if it wishes to avoid shutting down the federal government.

“I don’t expect people to love this proposal, I don’t love this proposal, and we probably have made some wrong choices. But in contrast to last year’s Congress, which decided to duck these choices, at least we have made them in order to bring last year’s issues to a conclusion so we can turn the page and deal with next year’s priorities,” said Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey, D-Wisc.

The affected agencies have been working under a CR for four months and President George W. Bush is scheduled to release his FY 2008 budget next week.

Obey and Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Robert Byrd, D-W.V., last December announced they would introduce a joint funding bill based on last year’s spending. (See 110TH LIKELY TO ISSUE YEAR-LONG CR at http://www.fednews-online.com/?publicationId=9839.)

Unlike a continuing resolution, however, Obey’s spending bill includes some funding above that of FY 2006, including federal employees’ pay raises. (A summary of the funding deviations can be found at http://appropriations.house.gov/pdf/CRSummary.pdf.)

Language in the bill precludes legislators from introducing earmarks.

“This decision does not come without pain. Many worthwhile earmarks were cut including the Boys and Girls Clubs, the Points of Light Foundation, and America’s Promise. Hopefully, whatever short term pain this causes will be more than made up for in the long run,” said Obey