Lawmakers Reach Topline Spending Agreement as Shutdown Threat Looms
Lawmakers returned to Washington from the holiday recess to the news that Congressional Leaders had reached an agreement on FY 24 spending. House and Senate negotiators set $1.7 trillion as the topline budget number, but will still need to negotiate and pass a final budget to avoid at least a partial government shutdown. This latest deal contains funding levels largely consistent with the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA), the previous bipartisan funding agreement between Former Speaker McCarthy and President Biden.
Like the FRA, this latest bipartisan agreement maintains the $886 billion for defense agreed to last year, leaving the remaining $773 billion for non-defense funding. To calm growing angst to his right, Speaker Johnson has touted the agreement’s $16 billion in cuts; $10 billion from new IRS funding and $6 billion in rescinded Covid Relief funding. Johnson and allies have held this agreement and his previous “laddered” Continuing Resolution as transformative appropriations policy by ensuring the twelve appropriations bills be considered individually and not combined into a single omnibus bill. Some of the Speaker’s colleagues remain unconvinced and have publicly said that they will not support the measure as written.
Growing opposition from fiscal conservatives, stalled negotiations on Ukraine and the Southern border funding, hardline partisan amendments for bipartisan negotiators, and the resemblance of this agreement to the previous deal that ended Kevin McCarthy’s Speakership, have all stalled passage of a bipartisan budget over the last year. Each of these challenges are amplified by an ultra-condensed timeline to negotiate and pass a bipartisan budget before the January 19th funding deadline, also during a pivotal election year. Having a topline budget number is a relief for many and reduces the likelihood of a full government shutdown, but the shortened timeline still leaves the possibility of a brief shutdown for parts of the government, namely HUD.
As always, NAHRO will continue to monitor the negotiations and provide updates as they become available.
Visit NAHRO’s Action Alert Center today to send a letter to your members of Congress about responsible FY 24 funding for housing and community development programs.