House Introduces Funding Bill Without Senate Support
Scroll to the bottom to read an update from September 23, 2020.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced a new stopgap government funding bill this week without first securing support from her Republican counterparts in the Senate or the White House. This bill would extend current levels of spending for agencies past the September 30 end of the fiscal year through December 11.
However, Republicans have requested that 30 billion dollars of farm aid be included in the funding bill, which Democrats left out, noting they would prefer a separate stimulus negotiation for this aid.
The stopgap funding bill, known as a continuing resolution (CR), would buy lawmakers time to negotiate full appropriations packages for agencies while averting a government shutdown and continuing agency funding at FY 2020 levels. In terms of appropriations, the House has passed 10 out of 12 funding bills and the Senate has not passed any.
The House CR is set to get a vote this week and then will be sent to the Senate, where Republicans have the majority. Both Democrats and Republicans admit that it is a priority for them to ensure that the federal government stays open, especially before the election.
Larry Kudlow, President Donald Trump’s chief economic adviser said, “We do prefer additional farm aid in the CR. Most of all we want a clean CR, keep the government open.” Speaker Pelosi agreed with this sentiment and said, “None of us has any interest in shutting down government.”
Senate Republicans, especially those from farm states, are pushing for additional funding for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Commodity Credit Corp. (CCC), a government-owned entity that aims to stabilize farm income.
A key feature of the Democrats’ proposed CR is a new fee structure for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to help resolve financial challenges within the agency that almost left 13,400 employees furloughed this summer. The CR allows USCIS to set and collect “premium fees,” which range between $1,500-2,500, for certain agency services.
Additionally, the bill would prevent federal agencies from furloughing their employees due to financial distress. The bill reads, “Amounts made available under [the CR] for civilian personnel compensation and benefits in each department and agency may be apportioned up to the rate for operations necessary to avoid furloughs within such department or agency.”
The CR also provides additional funding over FY 2020 levels to various agencies. For example, it includes funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) that it may need to pursue its 10-year, multi-billion electronic health record modernization. It also includes $1.5 billion available to the Census Bureau.
Furthermore, both the General Services Administration (GSA) and the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) would receive an additional $9.9 million and $18 million, respectively, to support an upcoming presidential transition. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) will be allowed to tap into trust funds it oversees to keep operations working.
Federal contractors are also afforded benefits in this CR. The bill includes an extension of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act provision allowing agencies to keep their contractors in pay status if they cannot telework or enter their agency’s facilities due to the ongoing pandemic. This provision, set to expire on September 30th, would be extended to December 11th.
FEDmanager will continue to report on government funding considerations as additional legislative advancements occur.
UPDATE: On the night of September 22, 2020, nine days before the government was due to shut down, the House passed a stopgap funding measure through December 11, 2020. Members of the House passed the funding measure in a 359 to 57 vote. The bill includes an important measure prioritized by Republicans- $30 billion in farm aid.
Now that the bill is heading to the Senate, it is likely that it will be passed because of the farm aid, which has been a sticking point in negotiations. The aid provides reimbursement for the Department of Agriculture’s Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC).
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) said on the House floor regarding the deal, “We have an agreement that will keep the government functioning for the people. There was a lot of to and fro-ing, a lot of people wanted this, a lot of people wanted that, a lot of people didn’t want this... This is the best we have, so we need to take it.”
Senate Appropriations Chair Richard Shelby (R-AL) said the Senate could vote on the stopgap measure as early as Thursday- he prefers them voting sooner rather than later.
