The past week has been particularly busy in our nation's Capitol, with Congress grappling with finishing Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 appropriations, the Trump Administration launching its budget for FY19, and the Senate debating immigration in earnest.
The past week has been particularly busy in our nation's Capitol, with Congress grappling with finishing Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 appropriations, the Trump Administration launching its budget for FY19, and the Senate debating immigration in earnest.
FY18
In the early morning of Friday, February 9, after a five-hour government shutdown, Congress passed its third Continuing Resolution for FY18, which will keep the federal government operating through the next deadline, March 23. Congress also agreed on the budget caps for both FY18 and FY19. This is an enormous achievement; it will enable Congress to move forward to complete FY18 and plan for FY19.
FY19
On Monday, February 12, the president released his recommendations for the FY19 federal budget. As a reminder, in any administration, the president's budget is a suggestion to Congress, not an edict. The real work of determining federal budgets and appropriations is done by Congress.
The president's proposal emphasizes defense and national security at the expense of non-defense programs/agencies. For example, the Defense Advanced Research Program received a 19% increase, yet many other research agencies critical to the University of Minnesota-NIH, NSF, DOE-are flat funded, with USDA taking a cut.
The president's budget eliminates a number of programs important to the U of M, such as the National Endowment of the Humanities and several Department of Education programs (Supplemental Education Opportunity Grants, Title VI International Education, Public Service Loan Forgiveness), as well as the Department of Energy's Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy program.
We have a complete analysis of both the FY18 agreement and the FY19 budget. Please contact us for more information.
Senate Immigration Debate
The compromises made in the Senate to reach the FY18 budget deal included an agreement to begin a debate on immigration and to address the status of DREAMERS.
The Senate began debating immigration Monday, February 12, launching a process that aimed to find a permanent solution for young undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children. Successful legislation must garner 60 votes required to pass in the Senate, then move to the House for consideration. However, on Thursday, February 15, none of the legislative proposals were able to get 60 votes. Absent compromise, the debate ended without a resolution.
President Kaler has been an outspoken advocate for finding a solution for DACA. Read President Kaler's most recent statement. Please contact us or the Immigration Task Force for more information on our advocacy.