federal budget

The U.S. Capitol. (Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

Battles over spending, farm bill, Ukraine and yet more loom over a divided Congress

BY: , , and - September 13, 2023

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House and Senate are both back in D.C. on Tuesday following a long summer recess, facing an overwhelming agenda of unfinished work — funding the federal government and reauthorizing major programs set to expire at the end of the month. Congressional leaders and President Joe Biden have only a few weeks […]

Under the debt limit law, domestic spending actually would get a boost compared to what it’s supposed to be if Congress can’t do its job and pass its spending bills by next spring. (Getty Images)

That 1% cut in federal spending in the debt limit law? It’s complicated.

BY: - August 18, 2023

WASHINGTON — The debt limit law Congress approved earlier this year included a much-publicized provision that would cut all federal spending by 1% if Republicans and Democrats fail to reach agreement on the dozen government funding bills before Jan. 1. That sounds pretty threatening. But, the across-the-board automatic spending cut wouldn’t actually have any real-world […]

Biden budget asks for 25% tax on billionaires, boosts in domestic and defense spending

BY: - March 10, 2023

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden said Thursday he’s ready to meet with U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to hash out federal spending as soon as House Republicans release their budget, a challenging task without a firm deadline. “I’m ready to meet with the speaker anytime, tomorrow if he has his budget,” Biden said during a […]

U.S. likely to default on debt between July and September unless Congress acts, CBO says

BY: - February 16, 2023

WASHINGTON — Congress has until at least July to broker a bipartisan debt agreement if lawmakers want to avoid a first-ever default, according to the Congressional Budget Office. The nonpartisan scorekeeper, which typically details how much legislation would cost, released a report Wednesday saying that U.S. lawmakers and the Biden administration have until sometime between […]

Interior would see big funding boost under Biden budget proposal, including tribal programs

BY: - March 30, 2022

President Joe Biden’s budget request, released Monday, would boost funding for the Interior Department by nearly one-fifth, well above what the administration has proposed for most discretionary spending. The president’s $5.8 trillion request to Congress for fiscal 2023 proposes a 5% increase for domestic discretionary programs. Interior would see $17.5 billion in discretionary spending, a 19% increase from the […]

Biden budget plan would levy minimum tax on billionaires, boost national security

BY: - March 29, 2022

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden sent a new $5.8 trillion budget request to Congress on Monday that calls on lawmakers to institute a minimum tax on billionaires and boost spending on national security. The proposal, which lawmakers will undoubtedly change, asks Congress to provide $795 billion in defense funding, a roughly 4% increase, and $915 billion […]

Biden lays out a ‘fund the police’ budget plan

BY: - March 29, 2022

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is requesting billions in its fiscal 2023 budget from Congress to fund police departments, despite progressive Democrats’ calls for some of that spending to be reallocated to social services. President Joe Biden’s budget request to Congress unveiled Monday asks for $30 billion for state and local governments to add more […]

Congress reaches deal on massive spending package with billions for Ukraine

BY: - March 10, 2022

WASHINGTON — Democrats and Republicans forged agreement early Wednesday on a spending package that will fund the government for the next eight months, as well as provide billions in emergency funding for the war in Ukraine. The announcement means Congress should be able to avert a government shutdown when a spending patch expires at midnight […]

U.S. Senate clears short-term funding bill after sidestepping ‘crack pipe’ concerns

BY: - February 18, 2022

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate on Thursday sent the president a three-week government funding bill that gives negotiators more time to reach agreement on a full-year spending package — avoiding a potential shutdown just one day away. Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, told States Newsroom that negotiators can wrap up […]

National parks struggling with maintenance would get a boost under Biden budget request

BY: - June 7, 2021

Basic needs at the largest U.S. national parks top the Biden administration’s first proposed lists of projects to receive funding through public lands trust funds, showing how much maintenance is needed even as parks brace for record numbers of visitors this summer. The projects likely wouldn’t be visible to the usual tourist, but they are […]

Biden pitches big boosts in education and health spending in budget request

BY: - April 12, 2021

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration released a key portion of its budget proposal for the upcoming fiscal year Friday, calling for increasing money for schools, public health programs, cancer research and other discretionary programs that it says have been underfunded for too long. The president’s $1.5 trillion request seeks to spend $769 billion on discretionary programs […]

House passes deal on stopgap funding, avoids government shutdown

BY: - September 24, 2020

House and Senate leaders reached a bipartisan agreement Tuesday night to pass a three-month funding stopgap, averting a government shutdown in the midst of a pandemic and a short time before the November elections. In a 359-57 vote, the House passed H.R. 8337, which extends federal government funding until Dec. 11, when lawmakers would have to renew it again. The […]