FY19

This week, the House and Senate Appropriations Committees approved their 302(b) allocations. 302(b) allocations establish the cap on spending for each of the 12 appropriations bills. The House approved a flat cap from FY18 of $177.1 billion for the Labor, Health and Human Services (LHHS) subcommittee, while the Senate approved a $2.2 billion increase from FY18 for LHHS, totaling $179.3 billion. A higher 302(b) level for the LHHS bill makes it more likely that programs within the bill will receive increases. On the flip side, level 302(b) allocations make increases in funding more challenging. The differing 302(b) levels between the houses of Congress will require reconciliation, potentially making the appropriations process longer and more complicated. For more information on the budget process go here.

Rescissions

House Republicans were unable to get the votes to pass the rescissions package this week. The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) may make amendments to the package, including to the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) component, and send it back for a possible vote after recess. We will let you know what we hear.