Senate Approves FY2005 Budget Resolution - Women's Congressional Policy Institute

This week, the Senate approved the FY2005 budget resolution. The House Budget Committee began its consideration of the budget resolution on March 11 but has postponed completion until next week.

Senate Action

After four days of debate, the Senate approved, 51-45, the FY2005 budget resolution (S. Con. Res. 95) on March 12. The Senate Budget Committee approved the resolution on March 4 (see The Source, 3/5/04).

Under the resolution, $814 billion would be provided for discretionary spending in FY2005, $9 billion below the administration’s request.

During consideration of the resolution, the Senate approved, 51-48, an amendment by Sen. Russell Feingold (D-WI) that would reinstate the pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) rule requiring that any tax cuts or spending increases be offset with revenue increases or spending cuts. A 60-vote majority in the Senate would be required to override the PAYGO rule.

The Senate also adopted the following amendments:

an amendment by Sen. Don Nickles (R-OK) that would increase the new budget authority for the International Affairs function by $330 million to provide adequate funding for the Child Survival and Health Program. The amendment was agreed to by voice vote;
an amendment by Sen. Nickles that would prevent unspent funds for the State Children’s Health Insurance Program from reverting to the treasury rather than being used to provide coverage for low-income children. The amendment was agreed to by unanimous consent;
an amendment by Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) that would increase discretionary health care funding by $2 billion. The amendment was agreed to, 72-24;
an amendment by Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND) that would establish a reserve for addressing minority health disparities. The amendment was agreed to by unanimous consent;
an amendment by Sen. Nickles that would express the sense of the Senate concerning summer food pilot projects. The amendment was agreed to by voice vote;
an amendment by Sen. Nickles that would restore discretionary funding levels for the rural health outreach grant program, the rural hospital flexibility grant program, the small hospital improvement program, and telehealth and trauma programs. The increase would be offset by a decrease in overall government travel expenses. The amendment was agreed to by unanimous consent;
an amendment by Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) that would establish a reserve for a tuition tax credit. The amendment was agreed to by voice vote;
an amendment by Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN) that would provide $1.9 billion to increase the maximum Pell Grant from $4,050 to $4,500. The increase would be offset by a reduction in spending for other federal government programs, except education programs. The amendment was agreed to by voice vote;
an amendment by Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) that would increase funding for the Indian Health Services. The amendment was agreed to by voice vote;
an amendment by Sen. Michael Enzi (R-WY) that would increase funding for the Workforce Investment Act by $250 million. The amendment was agreed to by unanimous consent;
an amendment by Sen. Nickles that would establish a reserve for expansion of the pediatric vaccine distribution program. The amendment was agreed to by unanimous consent;
an amendment by Sen. Nickles that would prevent tax increases for families that receive the child tax credit. The amendment was agreed to by voice vote;
an amendment by Sen. Nickles that would increase funding for the Small Business Administration 7(a) loan guarantee, microloan, and other small business programs. The amendment was agreed to by voice vote;
an amendment by Sen. Nickles that would reaffirm the United States ratio for contributions to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. The amendment was agreed to by voice vote;
an amendment by Sen. Nickles that would restore law enforcement and juvenile justice assistance within the Department of Justice. The amendment was agreed to by voice vote; and
an amendment by Sen. Nickles that would express the sense of the Senate concerning child nutrition funding. The amendment was agreed to by unanimous consent.

The Senate opposed the following amendments:

an amendment by Sen. Thomas Daschle (D-SD) that would have established a reserve to allow for a $2.7 billion increase for veterans’ medical care. The amendment also would have lowered the national debt by reducing tax breaks for individuals with incomes in excess of $1 million. The amendment was rejected, 44-53;
an amendment by Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) that would have provided full funding for the No Child Left Behind Act (P.L. 107-110). The amendment also would have lowered the national debt by closing tax loopholes. The amendment was rejected, 46-52;
an amendment by Sen. Conrad that would have established a reserve to increase the maximum Pell Grant so that it would keep pace with increases in public college tuition, and would have extended Pell Grants to 500,000 new recipients by closing certain tax loopholes. The amendment was rejected, 44-53;
an amendment by Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) that would have established a reserve to allow for a $1.8 billion increase for veterans’ medical care by eliminating tax loopholes. The amendment was rejected, 46-51;
an amendment by Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-CT) that would have established a reserve to allow for a $1 billion increase in the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program. The amendment also would have lowered the national debt by eliminating tax loopholes. The amendment was rejected, 42-54;
an amendment by Sen. Daschle that would have established a reserve to allow for a $3.44 billion increase for Indian Health Service clinical services by eliminating tax loopholes or reducing tax breaks for individuals with incomes in excess of $1 million. The amendment was rejected, 42-54;
an amendment by Sen. Mark Dayton (D-MN) that would have provided full mandatory funding over five years for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act by reducing tax breaks for the wealthiest individuals. The amendment was rejected by voice vote;
an amendment by Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) that would have established a reserve to increase funding for college and student financial aid programs, including the Pell Grant program. The amendment also would have lowered the national debt by closing tax loopholes. The amendment was rejected by voice vote;
an amendment by Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND) that would have increased funding for the Local Law Enforcement Block Grant by reducing tax breaks for certain individuals. The amendment was rejected, 41-55;
an amendment by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) that would have established a fund to provide increased resources for medical research, disease control, wellness programs, tobacco cessation, and preventative health efforts. The increase would have been offset by a $1 increase in the cigarette tax and proportional increases in other tobacco excise taxes. The amendment was rejected, 32-64;
an amendment by Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) that would have provided $60 billion over five years for greater health security for working Americans and their families through a combination of public and private efforts to expand quality, affordable health insurance, and cut health care costs by eliminating certain tax loopholes. The amendment was rejected, 43-53; and
an amendment by Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) that would have provided responsible restraints on discretionary funding while providing adequate resources for education, veterans, homeland security, and other domestic priorities by closing corporate tax loopholes, improving tax enforcement, and reducing tax breaks for certain individuals. The amendment was rejected, 43-53.

House Committee Action

On March 11, the House Budget Committee began its consideration of the FY2005 budget resolution (as-yet-unnumbered). A second mark-up session to complete the resolution has been scheduled for March 17. Details of the resolution will be available at that time.

During consideration of the resolution, the committee rejected the following amendments:

an amendment by Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-IL) that would have required the resolution to factor into consideration Medicare savings that could be achieved through the safe importation of the prescription drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The amendment was rejected, 17-23; and
an amendment by Rep. Darlene Hooley (D-OR) that would have provided a $6.2 billion increase for education programs by raising taxes on those individuals making more than $1 million. Of that amount, an additional $3 billion would have been provided for the No Child Left Behind Act, and the maximum Pell Grant would have been increased from $4,050 to $4,500. The amendment was rejected, 16-22.