For the second consecutive year, Congress met the April 15 deadline for adoption of the budget resolution. On April 13, the House approved the conference report by a vote of 220-208. The Senate approved the measure hours later by a vote of 50-48. With the adoption of the FY2001 budget resolution, appropriators may now begin work on the 13 annual appropriations bills.
Although the budget resolution is nonbinding and does not require the President’s signature, it sets forth the budget blueprint for FY2001, which totals $1.87 trillion in spending. Discretionary spending is set at $600.2 billion, an increase of $14.2 billion over FY2000, and the same amount adopted by the Senate. The House-passed version would have allocated $596.5 billion in discretionary spending. Like the House-passed plan, the final resolution provides for $150 billion in tax cuts over five years. Additionally, $25 billion over five years is set aside in a reserve fund for tax cuts.
Under the budget agreement, the Social Security surplus is reserved to strengthen the program. The final resolution also provides two reserve funds for Medicare. Like the House-passed resolution, the final version sets aside $40 billion over five years for Medicare reform or a prescription drug benefit. Additionally, the plan provides for a Senate-passed reserve fund that sets aside $20 billion over five years for a prescription drug benefit and another $20 billion over five years for Medicare reform.
The budget agreement also establishes a new point of order in the Senate against the consideration of bills containing emergency spending. The provision was included in the Senate-passed version and would require 60 votes to override the point of order and allow for consideration of emergency spending. The agreement also establishes a point of order against the consideration of bills containing advance appropriations greater than $23.5 billion. Last year, appropriators forward-funded a number of programs in order to get around spending limitations.
Education and training programs will receive $72.6 billion, an increase of $14.9 billion over last year. Health programs will receive an increase of $10.4 billion, bringing total funding to $169.6 billion in FY2001.
The final agreement does not include a Senate-passed provision that would have provided a $400 increase in the maximum Pell Grant award. The provision was sponsored by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA).
