FY17 Appropriations

Conference

Zika Virus Emergency Funding

The House Rules Committee took up the Senate’s FY17 Transportation-HUD, Military Construction-Veterans Affairs, and Zika response package (HR 2577) swapping out the Senate language and adding three House-passed bills – the $622M Zika supplemental appropriations measure (HR 5243), the FY17 MilCon-VA spending bill (HR 4973), and Zika virus authorization legislation (HR 897). The House then voted 233 to 180 for the rule allowing them to go to conference with the Senate. In addition to the overall funding level (the Senate appropriated $1.1B), one of the bigger issues conferees will have to address is whether or not the emergency funding requires a “pay for” or “offset.” The House justified its lower funding level saying that additional aid would come as part of the regular FY17 appropriations process. The Senate now needs to agree to go to conference.

House

House Floor

Energy and Water

The House took up their $37.4B FY17 Energy and Water appropriations bill this week, but the measure failed by a vote of 112 to 305 (130 Republicans voted no, 6 Democrats voted yes) after an amendment aimed at barring federal contractors from discriminating against LGBT employees passed and was included in the final bill. The amendment would have the effect of codifying a 2014 Executive Order issued by President Obama. Conservatives saw the amendment as an assault on religious freedom and offered their own amendment to allow for religious exemptions. House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-WI) did not vote on the measure, but other House GOP leaders did vote for the bill. The President issued a veto threat on the bill over funding levels and policy riders included in the spending bill. House GOP leaders have vowed to keep the appropriations bills moving, but Speaker Ryan conceded that he might have to change the “open” amendment process to keep the bills moving. The FY17 Defense appropriations bill is slated to be the next bill considered on the House floor.

House FY17 Energy and Water Bill Text:

https://www.congress.gov/114/bills/hr5055/BILLS-114hr5055rh.pdf

House FY17 Energy and Water Report Language:

https://www.congress.gov/114/crpt/hrpt532/CRPT-114hrpt532.pdf

OMB FY17 Energy and Water Veto Threat:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/legislative/sap/114/saphr5055r_20160523.pdf

House Committee

Commerce Justice Science

The full House Appropriations Committee marked up its FY17 Commerce Justice Science (CJS) spending bill this week and reported it out by voice vote. The FY17 CJS bill contains $56B in total discretionary spending, an increase of $279M over FY16 and $1.4B above the President’s budget request. The bill provides $29B for the Department of Justice ($347M above FY16), $19.5B for NASA ($223M above FY16), $9.1B for the Department of Commerce ($194M below FY16), and $15M for the Trade Enforcement Trust Fund and $90M for the International Trade Commission. In addition to a manager’s amendment, the committee adopted three other amendments – one adding language to reaffirm states rights to preserve their autonomy through the use of the legal system (adopted on a vote of 28-19), another to designate 5% of the Crime Victims Fund to be dedicated to Native Americans (adopted on a voice vote), and the final amendment prohibits funding in the bill from being used to implement a new EEOC regulation that requires businesses to report on certain demographic information of the employees (adopted on a voice vote).

FY17 House CJS Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-sc-ap-fy2017-cjs-subcommitteedraft.pdf

FY17 House CJS Report Language:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/hrpt-114-hr-fy2017-cjs.pdf

FY17 House CJS Summary:

http://appropriations.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=394535

Transportation HUD

The full House Appropriations Committee marked up its FY17 Transportation HUD (THUD) spending bill this week and reported it out of committee by a voice vote. The FY17 THUD bill contains a total of $58.2B in discretionary spending – an increase of $889M above FY16 and $4.9B billion below the President’s FY17 budget request. The bill includes $19.2B for the Department of Transportation ($540M above FY16, $4B below the President’s budget request), $38.7B for the Department of Housing and Urban Development ($384M above FY16, $953M below the President’s budget request), and $6.9B for Community Planning and Development Programs ($231M above FY16). The only amendment adopted was one making technical corrections.

FY17 House THUD Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-sc-ap-fy2017-transhud-subcommitteedraft.pdf

FY17 House THUD Report Language:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/hrpt-114-hr-fy2017-thud.pdf

FY17 House THUD Summary:

http://appropriations.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=394537

Financial Services

The House Financial Services Appropriations Subcommittee marked up its FY17 spending bill this week. The FY17 Financial Service bill provides $21.7B in funding, which is $1.5B below the FY16 enacted level and $2.7B below the President’s FY17 budget request. The committee funded the Internal Revenue Service at $10.9B (a cut of $236M from FY16 and $1.3B below the President’s request), the Small Business Administration at $883M, the General Services Administration at $9.2B ($951M below FY16), the Securities and Exchange Commission at $1.5B ($50M below FY16 and $226M below the President’s budget request), the Federal Communications Commission at $315M (a cut of $69M from FY16 and $43M below the President’s budget request), the Executive Office of the President at $692M, and the District of Columbia at $725M ($4.6M below FY16). The bill also includes a provision bringing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau under the annual congressional appropriations process instead of direct funding from the Federal Reserve and changes the leadership structure of the bureau. And it includes a provision to stop the IRS from further implementing ObamaCare.

FY17 House Financial Services Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-sc-ap-fy2017-fservices-subcommitteedraft.pdf

Interior and Environment

The House Interior and Environment Appropriations Subcommittee marked up its FY17 spending bill this week. The FY17 Interior bill provides $32.095B, which is $64M below FY16 and $1B below the President’s FY17 budget request.

FY17 House Interior and Environment Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-sc-ap-fy2017-interior-subcommitteedraft.pdf

Senate

Senate Committee

Defense

Senate Appropriators marked up their FY17 Defense spending bill in subcommittee and full committee this week. The $574.6B measure was reported out of committee by a vote of 30 to 0. The bill adheres to the President’s topline spending levels and is consistent with the Bipartisan Budget Agreement, but uses $15.1B in savings (more than 450 specific budget cuts) to cover some of the military’s unfunded priorities. It funds base programs at $515.9B, and provides $58.6B in Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funds.

Senate FY17 Defense Bill Text:

https://www.vantagepointstrat.com/senate-fy17-defense-approps-bill-text-5-26-16/

Senate FY17 Defense Report Language:

Part 1:

https://www.vantagepointstrat.com/senate-fy17-defense-approps-report-part-1/

Part 2:

https://www.vantagepointstrat.com/senate-fy17-defense-approps-report-part-2/

Part 3:

https://www.vantagepointstrat.com/senate-fy17-defense-approps-report-part-3/

Senate FY17 Defense Majority Summary:

http://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/majority/senate-appropriations-committee-approves-fy2017-defense-funding-bill

Senate FY17 Defense Minority Summary:

http://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/minority/fy17-defense-full-committee-markup-bill-summary

Homeland Security

Senate Appropriators marked up their FY17 Homeland Security spending bill in subcommittee and full committee this week. The $48.07B measure includes $6.7B for the FEMA Disaster Relief Fund and $163M in Overseas Contingency Operations funding for the Coast Guard. The bill was reported out of committee by a vote of 30 to 0.

Senate FY17 Homeland Security Bill Text:

https://www.vantagepointstrat.com/senate-fy17-homeland-security-approps-bill-text-5-26-16/

Senate FY17 Homeland Security Report Language:

https://www.vantagepointstrat.com/senate-fy17-homeland-security-appropriations-report/

Senate FY17 Homeland Security Majority Summary:

http://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/majority/senate-committee-passes-fy2017-homeland-security-appropriations-bill

Senate FY17 Homeland Security Minority Summary:

http://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/minority/fy17-dhs-full-committee-markup-bill-summary

Subcommittee	House	Senate
Agriculture	Subcommittee: April 13 Full Committee: April 19	Subcommittee: May 17 Full Committee: May 19
Commerce-Justice-Science	Subcommittee: May 18 Full Committee: May 24	Subcommittee: April 19 Full Committee: April 21
Defense	Subcommittee: May 11 Full Committee: May 17	Subcommittee: May 24 Full Committee: May 26
Energy & Water	Subcommittee: April 13 Full Committee: April 19 Floor: Week of June 6?	Subcommittee: April 13 Full Committee: April 14 Floor: May 12
Financial Services	Subcommittee: May 25
Homeland Security		Subcommittee: May 24 Full Committee: May 26
Interior	Subcommittee: May 25
Labor HHS Education
Legislative Branch	Subcommittee: April 20 Full Committee: May 17	Full Committee: May 19
Military Construction – Veterans Affairs	Subcommittee: March 23 Full Committee: April 13 Floor: May 19	Subcommittee: April 13 Full Committee: April 14 Floor: May 19
State Foreign Operations
Transportation HUD	Subcommittee: May 18 Full Committee: May 24	Subcommittee: April 19 Full Committee: April 21 Floor: May 19

 

FY16 vs. FY17 302(b) Allocations

 

	FY16 302(b)	FY17 House 302(b)	FY17 Senate 302(b)
Agriculture	$21.75B	$21.3B	$21.2B
Commerce Justice Science	$55.7B	$56B	$56.3B
Defense*	$572.7B	$575.7B	$572.7B
Energy & Water	$37.2B	$37.4B	$37.5B
Financial Services	$23.2B	$21.7B	$22.4B
Homeland Security*	$41.12B		$41.2B
Interior	$32.16B	$32.095B	$32B
Labor HHS Education	$162.1B		$161.9B
Legislative Branch	$4.37B	$3.48B (excludes Senate only items)	$4.4B
Military Construction/VA*	$79.9B	$81.6B	$83B
State Foreign Ops*	$52.68B		$52.1B
Transportation HUD	$57.6B	$58.2B	$56.5B

*Includes Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funding.

FY17 Budget and Appropriations

House

FY17 Budget Resolution

House Republicans are still unable to find a budget resolution to appease all of their members as the latest attempt to win the support of their party’s deficit hawks has fallen flat. The latest offer was to condition the $1.07T discretionary topline spending on passage of $30B in spending cuts to entitlement programs. Conservatives in the House are doubtful that the bill would survive in the Senate, and therefore, reluctant to support it in the House. And House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-WI) is hesitant to force the resolution on his caucus.

House Floor

Military Construction-Veterans Affairs

For the first time since 1974 when the modern budget process was created, the House took up a regular appropriations bill without a budget resolution or a deeming resolution setting topline spending limits. The House passed the $81.6B FY17 Military Construction-Veterans Affairs bill by a vote of 295 to 129 (4 Republicans voted against the bill and 57 Democrats voted in favor of the bill). While an amendment barring the Confederate flag being flown at cemeteries run by the Department of Veterans Affairs derailed the FY16 appropriations process in the House, it passed the House this year by a vote of 265 to 159 with the support of GOP leaders. Another controversial amendment looked like it would also pass, but was ultimately rejected by a vote of 212 to 213 after several Republicans flipped their votes from “yay” to “nay” when the vote was held open for several minutes past the allotted time. The amendment would have barred federal contractors from getting government work if they discriminate against the LGBT community. The Office of Management and Budget issued a Statement of Administration Policy stating that they would recommend the President veto the bill over the inclusion of restrictions on the use of funds to transfer individuals held at Guantanamo Bay and close the facility.

House FY17 MilCon-VA Bill Text:

https://www.congress.gov/114/bills/hr4974/BILLS-114hr4974rh.pdf

House FY17 MilCon-VA Report Language:

https://www.congress.gov/114/crpt/hrpt497/CRPT-114hrpt497.pdf

OMB FY17 MilCon-VA Veto Threat:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/legislative/sap/114/saphr4974r_20160517_v2.pdf

Zika Response Act

The House also passed HR 5243, the Zika Response Appropriations Act by a vote of 241 to 183 (3 Democrats voted for the bill, 4 Republicans voted against it). The bill provides $622M to fight the spread of the Zika virus, less than the Administration’s requested $1.9B. And the funding is offset with $352.1M of unused money for fighting the Ebola outbreak and $270M in other unused funding for the Department of Health and Human Services. The Administration issued a statement threatening that the President would veto the measure calling the funding levels “woefully inadequate” and objecting to the bill’s use of previously-appropriated funding as an offset. The Administration argued that the funding should be treated as an emergency and should not be offset. House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers (R-KY) said that the Administration’s $1.9B request was for several years and that additional funding could be part of the FY17 appropriations process.

Zika Funding Bill:

http://docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/20160516/BILLS-114hr-HR5243-AF.pdf

OMB Zika Funding Veto Threat:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/legislative/sap/114/saphr5243r_20160517.pdf

House Committee

Defense

The full House Appropriations Committee marked up its FY17 Defense spending bill this week. The bill provides $517.1B in discretionary funding – an increase of $3B over the FY16 enacted level and $587M below the President’s budget request. The bill also provides $58.6B in Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funding – the level allowed under current law. In addition to a non-controversial manager’s amendment, the Committee adopted by voice vote an amendment by Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) stating that “Congress has a constitutional duty to debate and determine whether or not to authorize the use of military force against ISIL.”

House FY17 Defense Appropriations Bill Summary:

http://appropriations.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=394520

House FY17 Defense Appropriations Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-sc-ap-fy2017-defense-subcommitteedraft.pdf

House FY17 Defense Appropriations Report Language:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/hrpt-114-hr-fy2017-defense.pdf

Legislative Branch

The full House Appropriations Committee also marked up its $3.48B FY17 Legislative Branch spending bill. In addition to a non-controversial manager’s amendment, the Committee adopted by voice vote an amendment by Rep. Sam Farr (D-CA) that provided an additional $8.3M for the Members Representational Allowances account (1.5% increase), transferred from the Architect of the Capital Construction and Operations Fund.

House FY17 Legislative Branch Bill Summary:

http://appropriations.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=394506

House FY17 Legislative Branch Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-fc-ap-fy2017-ap00-legbranch.pdf

House FY17 Legislative Branch Report Language:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/hrpt-114-hr-fy2017-legbranch.pdf

Commerce Justice Science

The House Commerce Justice Science (CJS) Appropriations Subcommittee marked up its FY17 spending bill this week. The FY17 CJS bill contains $56B in total discretionary spending, an increase of $279M over FY16 and $1.4B above the President’s budget request. The bill provides $29B for the Department of Justice ($347M above FY16), $19.5B for NASA ($223M above FY16), $9.1B for the Department of Commerce ($194M below FY16), and $15M for the Trade Enforcement Trust Fund and $90M for the International Trade Commission. The bill also includes several policy provisions:

• Continuation of a prohibition on the transfer or release of Guantanamo detainees into the U.S.;
• Continuation of various existing provisions related to firearms, and making four of these provisions permanent;
• A prohibition on NASA and the Office of Science and Technology Policy engaging in bilateral activities with China unless authorized or certified via procedures established in the bill;
• A prohibition on funds for exports to the Cuban military officers or their families;
• A requirement for agencies to provide inspectors general with timely information.
• A continuation of language prohibiting funds to relinquish the responsibility of Department of Commerce with respect to Internet Domain Name System functions; and
• A continuation of existing policies related to the sanctity of life.

The bill will be marked up in full committee next Tuesday at 10:30 am.

Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-sc-ap-fy2017-transhud-subcommitteedraft.pdf

Transportation HUD

The House Transportation HUD (THUD) Appropriations Subcommittee marked up its FY17 spending bill this week. The FY17 THUD bill contains a total of $58.2B in discretionary spending – an increase of $889M above FY16 and $4.9B billion below the President’s FY17 budget request. The bill includes $19.2B for the Department of Transportation ($540M above FY16, $4B below the President’s budget request), $38.7B for the Department of Housing and Urban Development ($384M above FY16, $953M below the President’s budget request), and $6.9B for Community Planning and Development Programs ($231M above FY16). The legislation also includes a number of legislative reforms:

• Clarifies and extends the prohibition on the 2013 changes to the 34-hour truck-driver restart rule.
• Facilitates interstate commerce by affirming a uniform hours of service trucking requirement.
• Requires DOT to improve safety data.
• Restricts HUD from implementing floodplain policies.

The bill will be marked up in full committee next Tuesday at 10:30 am.

Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-sc-ap-fy2017-transhud-subcommitteedraft.pdf

Senate

Senate Floor

This week the Senate passed HR 2577 a combined measure that includes the FY17 Transportation HUD and FY17 Military Construction-Veterans Affairs spending bills. The bill was passed by a vote of 89 to 8 with all of the “nay” votes coming from Republicans (Corker, Crapo, Flake, Lankford, Lee, Paul, Risch, and Sessions). The bill also included a $1.1B Zika virus amendment offered by Sens. Roy Blunt (R-MO) and Patty Murray (D-WA) that was passed by a vote of 68 to 30 (all “nay” votes were Republicans). The Senate Zika funding is treated as emergency funding that doesn’t require any offsetting cuts to other programs. While the emergency funding is attached to the THUD/MilCon-VA spending bill, the Senate may decide to conference the provision with the House-passed measure that is a standalone bill.

The Administration threatened to veto the measure due to the inclusion of “problematic ideological provisions” and that the bill did not support the President’s vision for a 21^st Century Clean Transportation Plan.

OMB FY17 THUD/MilCon-VA Veto Threat:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/legislative/sap/114/saphr2577s_20160516.pdf

Senate Committee

Agriculture

Senate Appropriators unanimously approved their $21.25 FY17 Agriculture spending bill this week. The bill is $250M below the FY16 enacted level and $21.7B below the President’s FY17 budget request.

Senate FY17 Agriculture Bill Text:

https://www.congress.gov/114/bills/s2956/BILLS-114s2956pcs.pdf

Senate FY17 Agriculture Report Language:

https://www.congress.gov/114/crpt/srpt259/CRPT-114srpt259.pdf

Legislative Branch

Senate Appropriators approved their FY17 Legislative Branch spending bill by a vote of 30 to 0 this week. The $3.021B measure increases spending on information technology security, which attributed to much of the $1M increase over FY16 levels. The Senate measure would provide $387M for the Capitol Police, $12M above FY16 but $22.6M below the President’s budget request.

The Architect of the Capitol would be funded at $419.3M, $8.7M below the FY16 level and $75.5M below the President’s budget request. The bill would provide $608.9M to the Library of Congress, $8.9M above the FY16 level and $58.3M below the President’s budget request. And GAO is funded at $542.4M, $11.4M above FY16 and $25.4M below the FY17 budget request.

Senate FY17 Legislative Branch Bill Text:

https://www.congress.gov/114/bills/s2806/BILLS-114s2806pcs.pdf

Senate FY17 Legislative Branch Report Language:

https://www.congress.gov/114/crpt/srpt258/CRPT-114srpt258.pdf 

Subcommittee	House	Senate
Agriculture	Subcommittee: April 13 Full Committee: April 19	Subcommittee: May 17 Full Committee: May 19
Commerce-Justice-Science	Subcommittee: May 18 Full Committee: May 24	Subcommittee: April 19 Full Committee: April 21
Defense	Subcommittee: May 11 Full Committee: May 17	Subcommittee: May 24 Full Committee: May 26
Energy & Water	Subcommittee: April 13 Full Committee: April 19 Floor: Week of May 23	Subcommittee: April 13 Full Committee: April 14 Floor: May 12
Financial Services	Subcommittee: May 25
Homeland Security		Subcommittee: May 24 Full Committee: May 26
Interior	Subcommittee: May 25
Labor HHS Education
Legislative Branch	Subcommittee: April 20 Full Committee: May 17	Full Committee: May 19
Military Construction – Veterans Affairs	Subcommittee: March 23 Full Committee: April 13 Floor: May 19	Subcommittee: April 13 Full Committee: April 14 Floor: May 19
State Foreign Operations
Transportation HUD	Subcommittee: May 18 Full Committee: May 24	Subcommittee: April 19 Full Committee: April 21 Floor: May 19

FY16 vs. FY17 302(b) Allocations

 

	FY16 302(b)	FY17 House 302(b)	FY17 Senate 302(b)
Agriculture	$21.75B	$21.3B	$21.2B
Commerce Justice Science	$55.7B	$56B	$56.3B
Defense*	$572.7B	$575.7B	$572.7B
Energy & Water	$37.2B	$37.4B	$37.5B
Financial Services	$23.2B		$22.4B
Homeland Security*	$41.12B		$41.2B
Interior	$32.16B		$32B
Labor HHS Education	$162.1B		$161.9B
Legislative Branch	$4.37B	$3.48B (excludes Senate only items)	$4.4B
Military Construction/VA*	$79.9B	$81.6B	$83B
State Foreign Ops*	$52.68B		$52.1B
Transportation HUD	$57.6B	$58.2B	$56.5B

*Includes Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funding.

 

FY17 Budget and Appropriations

House

FY17 Budget Resolution

House Budget Committee Chairman Tom Price (R-GA) met with GOP rank-and-file this week in a closed-door conference to discuss a path forward for an FY17 budget resolution. Price proposed pairing in a single bill the $1.07B budget resolution with $30B in new cuts in entitlement programs. Some Republicans expressed cautious optimism after the meeting, but its not clear if enough conservatives will back the bill without a guarantee that the Senate will ever consider it. If House leaders can get enough votes for the plan, the budget resolution would go to the floor next week ahead of any appropriations bills.

House Floor

The House could begin considering FY17 appropriations bills on the House floor next week after the May 15 deadline for a budget or deeming resolution. House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers (R-KY) plans on bringing the FY17 Military Construction-Veterans Affairs (MilCon-VA) spending bill to the floor next week as well as a separate Zika supplemental appropriations bill. Rogers will unveil the Zika aid package on Monday. It is likely to appropriate less than the bipartisan Senate agreement of $1.1B in FY16 funding. House Democrats believe the Zika issue is an emergency that doesn’t require offsets, but Conservatives in the House may require that it be paid for. Democrats may also oppose the measure if they consider the amount Roger’s proposes inadequate. While it will be introduced as a standalone bill it could hitch a ride on the FY17 MilCon-VA bill, which would provide procedural protections.

Defense

The House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee marked up its FY17 spending bill this week. The bill provides $517.1B in discretionary funding – an increase of $3B over the FY16 enacted level and $587M below the President’s budget request. The bill also provides $58.6B in Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funding – the level allowed under current law. The subcommittee followed the lead of the House Armed Services Committee, which targeted OCO funding to provide additional funds for the base budget. Of the $58.6B in OCO funding, $43B is included to support OCO operations through April 30, 2017. The additional $15.7B is redirected to fund unmet needs within the base budget. The bill will be marked up in full committee on Tuesday.

FY17 Defense Appropriations Bill Text:

http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-114hr-sc-ap-fy2017-defense-subcommitteedraft.pdf

FY17 Defense Appropriations Draft Report Language:

https://www.vantagepointstrat.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/House-FY17-Defense-Appropriations-Report-5-13-16.pdf

Bill Summary:

http://appropriations.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=394520

Senate

The Senate passed its $37.5B FY17 Energy and Water appropriations bill on the Senate floor this week by a vote of 90 to 8 after dispensing with an Iran heavy water amendment offered by Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR). The amendment was subject to a 60-vote threshold and failed by a vote of 57 to 42. Cotton then withdrew the amendment allowing the Senate to proceed with a cloture vote and final vote on passage. This is the earliest the Senate has passed an appropriations bill in 40 years. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said that the Senate will continue to consider the FY17 spending bills up until they break in July for the Republican and Democrat Presidential nominating conventions. Up next on the docket is a combined measure that includes the FY17 Transportation HUD and FY17 Military Construction-Veterans Affairs spending bills. The text of the two Senate bills will be offered as amendments to HR 2577, an FY15 Transportation HUD spending bill that passed the House last year but did not go anywhere in the Senate. The Senate has a limited number of those House shell bills left over from last year, which are used to avoid procedural hurdles dealing with the origination of spending bills in the Senate. That scarcity of vehicles has prompted McConnell to combine the transportation and veterans measures into a so-called “minibus” while he waits for the House to begin floor work on appropriations.

Floor action on the bill will also include consideration of amendments providing emergency funding for the Zika virus. While the emergency funding is germane to the bill, the Senate had to employ a complicated procedure to link the House’s FY17 MilCon-VA bill to HR 2577 so that Zika amendments are fair game under Senate procedure. Three Zika amendments are pending in the Senate – one from Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL), one from Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), and a bipartisan agreement offered by Sens. Roy Blunt (R-MO) and Patty Murray (D-WA). The first amendment to achieve 60 affirmative votes to limit debate will become the Senate’s floor business for up to the next 30 hours, and will be poised to be added to the Transportation HUD and MilCon VA minibus. Nelson’s amendment seeks $1.9B in emergency funding, while Cornyn’s amendment seeks $1.1B offset by cutting money from the President’s healthcare overhaul. The Blunt-Murray bipartisan amendment would provide $1.1B in emergency funding and is the amendment that is expected to prevail.

Subcommittee	House	Senate
Agriculture	Subcommittee: April 13 Full Committee: April 19	Subcommittee: May 17 Full Committee: May 19
Commerce-Justice-Science	Subcommittee: May 18	Subcommittee: April 19 Full Committee: April 21
Defense	Subcommittee: May 11 Full Committee: May 17
Energy & Water	Subcommittee: April 13 Full Committee: April 19	Subcommittee: April 13 Full Committee: April 14 Floor: May 12
Financial Services
Homeland Security
Interior
Labor HHS Education
Legislative Branch	Subcommittee: April 20 Full Committee: May 17
Military Construction – Veterans Affairs	Subcommittee: March 23 Full Committee: April 13 Floor: Week of May 16	Subcommittee: April 13 Full Committee: April 14 Floor: Week of May 16
State Foreign Operations
Transportation HUD	Subcommittee: May 18	Subcommittee: April 19 Full Committee: April 21 Floor: Week of May 16