After two days of debate, the House Budget Committee approved, 24-19, the FY2005 budget resolution (as-yet-unnumbered) on March 17. The committee began its mark-up session on March 11; the Senate approved its version of the budget resolution (S. Con. Res. 95) on March 12 (see The Source, 3/12/04).
Under the resolution, $821.3 billion would be provided for discretionary spending in FY2005, $1.7 billion below the administration’s request, but $7.3 billion above the Senate resolution.
The resolution proposes to extend through 2010 several tax provisions included in the 2003 tax law (P.L. 108-27) that are set to expire on December 31, 2004. These include: the accelerated increase in the child tax credit, the expansion of the 10 percent income tax bracket, and the expansions of the standard deduction and 15 percent income tax bracket for married taxpayers filing jointly.
The resolution also directs the House Committees on Agriculture, Education and the Workforce, Energy and Commerce, Government Reform, and Ways and Means to find $13.2 billion in mandatory spending cuts over five years.
In FY2005, the resolution would provide $26.5 billion for international programs; $92.5 billion for education, training, employment, and social services; and $245.1 billion for health programs.
To address the ongoing costs of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the resolution would include a $50 billion reserve for supplemental appropriations.
During consideration of the resolution, the committee rejected the following amendments:
- an amendment by Rep. Denise Majette (D-GA) that would have provided an additional $6.5 billion to extend unemployment compensation benefits through June 30, 2004, including $150 million for worker training programs and $203 million for business loans and assistance programs within the Small Business Administration. The increase would have been offset with a tax increase for individuals with incomes in excess of $1 million. The amendment was defeated, 17-21;
- an amendment by Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA) that would have reinstated the pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) rule requiring that any tax cuts or spending increases be offset with revenue increases or spending cuts. The amendment was defeated, 17-21;
- an amendment by Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) that would have provided an additional $1.3 billion for child care in FY2005. The amendment also would have established a $5 billion reserve for legislation that addresses access to health care services and health insurance for the uninsured. The increase would have been offset with a tax increase for individuals with incomes in excess of $1 million. The amendment was defeated, 16-23;
- an amendment by Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA) that would have provided an additional $1.3 billion for the Department of Justice, including funding for the Local Law Enforcement Block Grant and juvenile justice programs. The increase would have been offset with a tax increase for individuals with incomes in excess of $1 million. The amendment was defeated, 17-24;
- an amendment by Rep. Lois Capps (D-CA) that would have struck from the resolution language instructing the House Energy and Commerce Committee to reduce funding for Medicaid and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program by $40 million in FY2005. The amendment was defeated, 19-22;
- an amendment by Rep. Majette that would have expressed the sense of the House that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention does not have adequate buildings or facilities, and that new funding should be allocated for those improvements. The amendment was defeated by voice vote;
- an amendment by Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI) that would have provided an additional $272 million for vocational and technical education programs and reduced the deficit by $272 million. The costs would be offset by a tax increase for individuals with annual incomes over $1 million. The amendment was defeated, 17-21;
- an amendment by Rep. Baldwin that would have provided an additional $360 million for the National Institutes of Heath by raising taxes on individuals with annual incomes more than $1 million. The amendment was defeated, 17-23;
- an amendment by Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) that would have directed the House Ways and Means Committee to provide revenue totaling $1.7 billion to increase the child tax credit from 10 percent to 15 percent for families with annual earnings between $10,500 and $26,625. The amendment would have been offset by closing $2.4 billion in tax loopholes. The amendment was defeated, 18-23; and
- an amendment by Rep. Rahm Emmanuel (D-IL) that would have extended through FY2005 the tuition deduction for higher education grants. The amendment also would have expressed the sense of the House that if the cost of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act (MMA) of 2003 (P.L. 108-173) exceeds $400 billion the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services would be authorized to negotiate for cheaper drug prices. The amendment would have been offset by a reduction from $250,000 to $100,000 in the tax breaks a business could receive for buying a sport utility vehicle. The amendment was defeated, 19-24.
|
During the same mark-up session, the committee approved, by voice vote, a bill (H.R. 3973) to reinstate the PAYGO rule requiring that any spending increases be offset with spending cuts.
Rep. Thompson offered an amendment that would have extended the PAYGO rule to tax cuts. The amendment was defeated, 18-24.
Prior to the final vote, the committee approved, 24-18, a substitute amendment by Chair Jim Nussle (R-IA) that would clarify that appropriations for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan would be exempt from the PAYGO rule.
The House will consider the FY2005 budget resolution next week.
