News from the Hill: January 25, 2024
The 118th Congress convened earlier this month for its second session and largely picked up where unresolved items were left at the end of the first session. Most notably, Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 appropriations have not been completed and another short-term Continuing Resolution (CR) was enacted before the first tranche of agency funding was scheduled to run out on January 19th (which would have triggered a partial government shutdown).
The new House Speaker, Mike Johnson (R-LA) negotiated a budget framework with the White House and other congressional leaders that largely mirrored the existing Fiscal Responsibility Act deal, but scored some concessions on handshake deals that had been established between the former Speaker and other congressional leaders. With overall allocations in place for Defense and Non-Defense programs, appropriators are now crafting FY 2024 spending bills and deciding how to provide funds for individual line items while maintain the 3% increase for defense and near-level funding for non-defense. To buy time to complete this effort and align the votes necessary for final passage, Congress passed another CR that provides funding until March 1st and March 8th for federal programs.
The Speaker’s new deal was met with a stern rebuke from the usual suspects on the far-right in the House. Deep funding cuts pushed by conservatives and polarizing policy riders are likely out of the process at this point (and it is important to note that current Senate FY24 bills generally reflect the new budget guidelines). The far-right and some progressive members voted against the new CR, but the measure easily passed with support from a broad bipartisan coalition of moderates.
The Speaker also invited President Biden to the House for the Sate of the Union on March 7th. With the FY 2024 appropriations process potentially completed by March 1st, the President may take the opportunity to highlight new priorities and initiatives for FY 2025 in the absence of a formal budget request. Given the current political and funding environment, it will be particularly crucial to advocate for meaningful funding increase for the full spectrum of medical research in 2024!
By: Dane Christiansen, Washington Representative