Budgets, Budgets Everywhere

It’s that time of year again – daffodils, pollen and, you guessed it, federal budgets.  Three proposals were released this week, one from the House, one from the Senate and one from the Congressional Progressive Caucus.  Not surprisingly, they all have very, very, VERY different perspectives.   You can view the hundreds of pages of details at the following sites:

Rep. Ryan (House Republican Leadership) http://budget.house.gov/

Sen. Murray (Senate Democratic Leadership) http://budget.senate.gov/democratic/index.cfm/senatebudget

Congressional Progressive Caucus: http://cpc.grijalva.house.gov/back-to-work-budget/

But Wait!

Before you get too into the specifics (including the hyperbole of the specifics), take a look at this past blog post on “The Five Things Advocates Need to Know About the Budget Process (http://advocacyassociates.blogspot.com/2012/02/five-things-advocates-need-to-know.html).   These include:

• Understanding the overall picture of the Federal government. Here’s a pet peeve: polls suggest that most Americans believe reducing or eliminating foreign aid will go a long way toward solving our budget problems. In truth, they make up about ½ of 1%. We can shake the couch cushions in DC and get more cash than that.
• Learning about the difference between the Presidential budget process and the Congressional budget process
• Knowing the difference between “budgets,” “authorizations” and “appropriations.
• Understanding discretionary vs. non-discretionary spending
• Finally, and most important, how to make a difference on the issues that matter to you

It’s easy to get mired in the details – but frankly, it’s not always the best use of everyone’s time.  If you can focus on what really matters you’ll be much less frustrated – and will be able to enjoy the coming Spring more. Except for the pollen part.

***The above article was written by Stephanie Vance, The Advocacy Guru. Follow her on Twitter. 

Congress Sets Spending Levels for First Six Months of FY13- Learn How to Prepare Your Advocates for FY13 and Beyond

Immediately prior to adjourning until after the election, Congress approved a six-month spending bill that will keep the government running when the current fiscal year ends on Sunday. Join Advocacy Associates on Thursday for the first of two free webinars on how to prepare your advocates for the election season, the new fiscal year, and beyond. Registration is now open.

The continuing resolution sets spending levels until March 27, 2013 at the $1.047 trillion level agreed upon in the Budget Control Act, the deal reached last summer to raise the debt ceiling. The spending cap for FY13 is slightly higher than FY12 levels, which will boost programs by .621% across the board and will allow $1.992 billion in additional funding to go to various projects and disaster relief.

The agreement marks a compromise between the House and the Senate, which based its individual spending bills on wildly differing topline levels. Conservative members of the House had been pushing the budget resolution introduced by Vice Presidential candidate Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), which would have lowered overall spending for FY13 by $19 billion. The Senate, on the other hand, supported the topline numbers agreed upon in the BCA.  In what seemed like a contradictory vote, the bill passed handily in the House, but passed by a narrower margin in the Senate. The President is expected to sign it into law this week.

After the election, fiscal issues such as sequestration, tax reform, and deficit control will dominate the lame duck session of Congress. Join Advocacy Associates for two free webinars to help you prepare your advocates and policy issues for the election season and beyond, regardless of the outcome of the election. Register here. 

House Budget Proposal Calls for Dramatic Cuts in FY13

The latest step in the process to determine federal funding levels for next year came this morning when House Republicans released their vision for the FY13 budget. (You may remember that the appropriations process kicked off with the release of the President’s proposal in mid-February and has continued with hearings by the Budget and Appropriations Committees of both chambers.)

Today’s proposal—announced by House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI)—calls for a dramatic reduction to the overall FY13 discretionary spending limit set by the Budget Control Act last August. It proposes setting the limit at $1.028 trillion, which is $19 billion lower than the level agreed to during the debt ceiling debate.

To achieve these deficit reduction goals, the plan outlines a wide range of suggested entitlement, educational, welfare, and tax reforms. It also targets examples of what House leaders have characterized as “wasteful spending.” Overall, it attempts to place the burden of deficit reduction on domestic programs while prioritizing the preservation of defense funding.

Although it is highly unlikely that this plan will be enacted, the Ryan Budget would have resounding consequences for domestic programs. Advocacy Associates takes an in-depth look at the specific effects of these proposals on federal sustainability programs in our new subscription-based resource, the Smart Growth Reporter. This product is designed to assist smart growth organizations and sustainability-focused offices in local government with gathering, analyzing and understanding the key policies, bottom-line numbers and historical implications of the budget and appropriations process.

Sign up now to receive complimentary access to the analysis & insight included in the first report of the FY13 budget cycle.

Five Things Advocates Need to Know About the Budget and Appropriations Process

Happy Budget Day!  If you’re intimidated, confused or even just bored by the federal budget process, read on for a few things we think citizens should know – without getting all bogged down in D.C. jargon (OK, maybe a little jargon).

It’s important now because your voice matters more than anyone else in the political process.  Clearly, the 112^th Congress is focused on cutting spending, which means that some program you like (whether it’s foreign aid, domestic education or business tax credits) will be cut.  Or perhaps you believe that everything should be reduced or eliminated – as many people do these days.  Members of Congress focus with intensity on the view of their constituents.  If you want your perspective to win out – you better speak up.  If you are going to speak up, though, be sure you know what you’re talking about.  Nothing screams “I haven’t done my homework” like someone saying, for example, “let’s balance the budget by eliminating all foreign aid programs.”  Foreign aid programs make up ½ of 1% of the budget.  Eliminating them won’t even balance my yearly coffee budget (yeah, I drink a lot of coffee).  Follow these four tips to learn a little more – and use this wisdom to become a lot more effective.

First, know the difference between the Presidential budget process and the Congressional budget process.  The Administration’s proposal, which comes out every February, is simply that – a proposal.  What Congress, as the branch that has the true “power of the purse strings,” decides is a totally different matter.  When the person occupying the White House and the leadership of the House and Senate are of the same political persuasion the budget numbers may be somewhat similar.  However, when the President and the Congress don’t see eye-to-eye, the President’s proposal becomes less a signal of where there are agreements and more a sign of what items will be most in contention

Second, know the differences between “budget,” “appropriations,” and “authorization” bills.  The first is a budget blueprint, the second type of bill allows a program to exist (authorization) and the third type provides actual funding for that program (appropriations).  The processes work in tandem and are equally important to the overall outcome.  Effective advocates understand the differences and develop their policy asks accordingly.

Third, know the differences between discretionary and non-discretionary spending.  The VAST majority of federal spending is on what are known as “non-discretionary” programs, such as Medicare, Social Security and interest on the national debt.  In essence, these programs are not truly non-discretionary: Congress could pass policy language making changes that would reduce or increase spending in these areas. However, major changes to these programs are few and far between.  Most yearly funding battles are oriented around the one-third of the budget that is considered “discretionary.”  Advocates need to understand that the funds available for domestic discretionary programs are decreasing, while demand is increasing, thus increasing the need for citizen voices.

Finally, know where to learn more.  In addition to the materials available on your own organization’s website, there are many other sources of information.  Consider Look at the Office of Management and Budget (www.omb.gov), the Congressional Budget Office at http://www.cbo.gov/, which has a primer on the budget process, and the National Priorities Project at http://nationalpriorities.org/, which also has a primer on the budget process has an interesting “where do your tax dollars go” calculator.

Armed with this information you’ll be ready to make a real difference.  So go forth!

Today The President's Budget is Released!

Today is a big day in Washington DC. President Obama has released his 2013 budget proposal. You can download it here. Also, the president's budget proposal will also be available through a smartphone app that will be availble for iPhone, Android, and Blackberry.

Today news coverage will be all about the President's budget. While going through the document, be sure to read press releases of your representatives to understand where he or she stands on the budget proposal. Then you can begin to draft a game plan to get your organization's budget campaign.

Be sure to follow our twitter feed @advocacyassoc and #happybudgetday for info about the budget throughout the day.

Work on FY 12 Spending Bills Moves Slowly as Congress Tackles Debt Limit before Deadline

The federal government is on track to reach the $14.3 trillion debt ceiling two weeks from today. The looming August 2 deadline means that most other issues on Capitol Hill are taking a backseat. Even the Fiscal Year 2012 appropriations process is partly on hold as everyone waits to see what deal congressional leaders will make to avoid the projected fallout of defaulting on federal debt. The current fiscal year will end September 30th, but this deadline is not always met by Congress. (Remember the near shutdown before a budget deal was reached in April for the current fiscal year? That was more than 6 months late.)

To date, only five of the twelve annual appropriations bills have been approved by the House and only one has been formally taken up by the Senate. Three bills—dealing with transportation and housing; the State Department and foreign aid; and labor, health and education spending—have not been introduced at all. What these three bills have in common is the likelihood of being targets for major reductions in funding if spending cuts are part of the debt deal.

Negotiations on a variety of proposals for handling our nation’s debt and future budgets are expected to continue right up until the August 2 deadline. Only after a short- or long-term compromise is reached, will we see final agreements on spending for FY 12. In the meantime, if you are confused about the deficit and what it means in terms of national spending, check out Five truths about the deficit and national debt.

Budgets, Budgets Everywhere!

You've probably heard that the government was going to shut down. Then not. Then it would. Then it wouldn't. Well, Congress has finally APPEARED to reach a deal for the current Fiscal Year (FY2011)(emphasis on "appeared") and you can read the text at www.congress.gov. To access it, under the search button select "bill number" and then type in H.R. 1473. There's also a PDF version at http://tinyurl.com/3c33wuv, but it's a PDF which, frankly, I find a little hard to read.

In addition, the text of the proposed budget resolution for FY2012 (the fiscal year starting on October 1st), is available at http://tinyurl.com/3dwmhah. Yeah, I know: which one means what? Following is a brief summary of three things it's good to know about the budget process:

The difference between the Presidential budget process and the Congressional budget process

First of all, the Administration’s proposal, which comes out every February, is simply that – a proposal. What Congress, as the branch that has the true “power of the purse strings,” decides is a totally different matter. When the person occupying the White House and the leadership of the House and Senate are of the same political persuasion the budget numbers may be somewhat similar. However, when the President and the Congress don’t see eye-to-eye, the President’s proposal becomes less a signal of where there are agreements and more a sign of what items will be most in contention

The differences between “budget,” “appropriations,” and “authorization”

Frankly, advocates and professionals alike are often confused by the differences between a) a budget blueprint, b) language allowing a program to exist (authorization) and c) the actually funding for that program (appropriations). Just think of it as it applies to your personal life: your budget gives you a sense of what you might spend on various items throughout the year; your bills (utilites, car payment, etc.) are your "authorizations" for programs to exist and the checks you write (or the wire transfers you authorize -- for those who don't remember checks) are your "appropriations."

Discretionary vs. Non-discretionary Spending

As anyone working on Federal funding issues knows, the VAST majority of federal spending is on what are known as “non-discretionary” programs, such as Medicare, Social Security and interest on the national debt. In essence, these programs are not truly non-discretionary: Congress could pass policy language making changes that would reduce or increase spending in these areas. However, major changes to these programs are few and far between. Most yearly funding battles are oriented around the one-third of the budget that is considered “discretionary.”

Advocates need to understand these differences for two reasons. First, to help rationalize (if the word “rational” can be used as it relates to the budget process) the yearly battles over funding for favored programs and second, to emphasis the fact that the funds available for domestic discretionary programs are decreasing, while demand is increasing.

In addition, it's important to recognize that when we propose cutting funding for programs like public broadcasting or the arts, we're not making even a dent in the budget deficit. We're barely making a discernable scratch. To make real progress, we'll need to look at those "non-discretionary" items, which will be extremely difficult politically.

So it will be a fun few months in Washington, DC as they rangle all this out. Hopefully, these few points about the budget process are useful as you "go forth and advocate," even in this confusing (and frustrating) process.

The Budget is Coming! The Budget is Coming!

Today the Obama Administration is releasing its proposed Federal budget for FY2011, which begins October 1, 2010. Highlights include a "job creation" proposal that envisions small business tax cuts and new infrastructure investments designed to generate jobs. According to the release, the budget cuts over 100 programs, while also proposing a series of funding increases.

Now, before you get all enthusiastic about specific increases (or freaked out about specific cuts), remember that this is the first step in a very long process. The President makes his proposals -- and those proposals certainly reflect what he thinks government should focus on -- but Congress has to develop the spending and tax packages. Congress may decide to do very little of what the President suggests, or everything, or something in between.

The whole process is outlined in an interesting interactive chart on the Washington Post website. Yes, I'm playing fast and loose with the word "interesting." Be sure to have a strong cup of coffee before delving in to the details of the process.

If you're just interested in the general overview, highlights of the budget proposal include:

• a freeze on discretionary spending and $20 billion in cuts to various programs
• an increase in funding at the Department of Education by $2.9 billion or 6.2 percent.
• a new $4 billion dollar National Infrastructure Innovation & Finance Fund to focus on infrastructure investments of national and regional significance
• more than $6 billion in funding for clean energy technologies
• the elimination of existing fossil fuel subsidies
• an increase of $3.7 billion, or 6.4 percent, for civilian research and development
• allowing the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts to expire only for those making more than $250,000 a year and reducing the rate at which these same households write-off itemized deductions
• ending subsidies for oil, gas, and coal companies and closing other loopholes
• a responsibility fee on the largest banks
• a bipartisan, fiscal commission to look at a range of proposals and put forward a bipartisan recommendation to balance the budget excluding interest payments on the debt by 2015

Remember, the best way to preserve programs you're most interested in (or eliminate those you think are wasteful) is through advocacy. Frankly, the government is going to have no idea what is most helpful or harmful unless you share your views. So get out there and get advocating!