December 7, 2010
To allow federal agencies to continue operating through Dec. 18, Congress last week approved another continuing resolution. The House approved the measure 239-178 and the Senate gave it unanimous consent. President Obama signed it into law on Saturday.
A new continuing resolution was necessary because a previous one — passed prior to the election — expired on Dec. 3, and Congress unfortunately has still not passed any of the twelve appropriations bills for this fiscal year. The new resolution will fund most agencies at last year’s enacted levels.
Also last week, the Senate failed to pass a Coburn amendment that would have imposed a 3-year moratorium on Senate earmarks. And in a letter to Majority Leader Harry Reid, Senate Republicans threatened to block all other legislative matters until the Senate funds the government and extends certain tax cuts.
External links:
Status of FY 2011 Appropriations
Text of Republican Letter to Senator Reid
Last updated: May 11, 2021
Continue Reading
Related Content
News
America at 250: A Milestone That Demands Fiscal Stewardship
News
How Medicare Is Driving the Federal Debt: New Trustees Report Shows Rising Pressures
News
A Time for Action
News
What the New Social Security Trustees Report Reveals About the Debt and Deficit
News
When Debt Outruns the Economy: Time for (at least) a 3% Deficit Target
News
Return to Fiscal Sanity: Bring Back the “Conrad Rule”
News
Why a Federal Gas Tax Holiday Misses the Real Highway Funding Problem
News
Can Taxes on the Ultra‑Wealthy Help Solve America’s Debt Problem?
News
When Bigger Budgets Meet Broken Books: The Pentagon’s Audit Failures and the Push for a $446 Billion Increase
News
Two Little‑Known Features of Social Security That Drive Its Long‑Term Costs
News
The Wrong Direction: How Recent Policy Changes Have Worsened Social Security’s Long‑Term Fiscal Outlook
News
Understanding Social Security: It’s Not Just “Get What You Pay In”