Funding for FY 2017 runs out on December 9. If Congress wraps up by Thursday this Congress will come to an end. Congressional Republicans, working with the in-coming Administration, will partially extend current year funding into the spring instead of finishing the fiscal year decisions. All last week Republican leaders from both houses were behind
It appears more likely that there will be two reconciliation measures next year. The first will be implemented through an FY 2017 budget resolution so that it can be used early in the year. The second would be implemented through a budget resolution for 2018. The first reconciliation will likely be used to repeal the
Shortly before the election the increases in the average premium costs under the ACA captured national attention. Premiums rose on average by more than 20 percent with increases ranging from 145 percent in Arizona ($507 per month) to a low of – 4 percent in Indiana ($286 per month). But all the focus was on
Congress returns for what is likely to be the last sprint for the 114th Congress. As part of that they are likely to move an updated version of the Families First Act (Conference Report 114-628)as part of a larger package of legislation. Congress may agree to a “21st Century Cures” bill that seeks to add
There has been a great deal of discussion in the last few weeks of how the new Congress and the Trump Administration will use the budget reconciliation process. What is the budget reconciliation and why is it so important? Budget reconciliation is a tool used by the Congress to enact spending reductions or increases in
Late last week Vice-President elect Mike Pence was working with House Republicans to adopt a continuing resolution (CR) that would extend FY 2017 funding into the end of March of next year. Current funding for 11 of the 12 appropriations bills run out on December 9. The goal of a March extension is that the
Would enactment of the Families First Act commit key Republicans leaders to protecting Title IV-E funding from being converted into a block grant? That is a question to consider in the waning days of the 114th Congress. Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WS) has made no secret of his desire to convert both Medicaid and SNAP/food stamps
This week will be the first opportunity for Washington to come back together after the presidential election. With dramatic changes in the presidential election, this week will be more than just plotting the rest of the 114th Congress. This will also be a planning stage for how the new leadership and the new Congress will
Since much of the President-elect Trump's agenda was wrapped less around specific domestic issues and more around the larger issues such as immigration and trade, it is not clear what the domestic policy agenda will look like. As a result, the priorities may be wrapped around a few big Trump initiatives and a Republican congressional
Nearly a month in the new fiscal year the fate of the FY 2017 budget is anything but certain. When the Congress returns on November 14, they must act on 11 of the 12 appropriations bills. Military Construction, separate from defense appropriations, is the only appropriations bill signed into law. Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WS) has
