WASHINGTON, D.C. – The House Appropriations Committee today introduced a Continuing Resolution (H.R. 1) to fund the federal government for the last seven months of the fiscal year while cutting spending by over $100 billion from the President’s fiscal year 2011 request. This CR legislation represents the largest single discretionary spending reduction in the history of Congress.
Note: NASA Budget reduction compared to FY 2010 enacted: $303.0 million. Compared to FY 2011 Request: $578.7 million. Source
| 2010 Actual | 2011 PBR | 2011 CR | Diff from 2010 | Diff from PBR | |
| Space Operations | $ 6,146.8 | $ 4,887.8 | $ 5,946.8 | $ (200.0) | $ 1,059.0 |
| Exploration | $ 3,746.3 | $ 4,263.4 | $ 3,746.3 | $ – | $ (517.1) |
| Science | $ 4,469.0 | $ 5,005.6 | $ 4,469.0 | $ – | $ (536.6) |
| Aeronautics | $ 501.0 | $ 1,151.8 | $ 501.0 | $ – | $ (650.8) |
| Education | $ 182.5 | $ 145.8 | $ 182.5 | $ – | $ 36.7 |
| Construction | $ 448.3 | $ 397.3 | $ 408.3 | $ (40.0) | $ 11.0 |
| Cross-Agency Support | $ 3,194.0 | $ 3,111.4 | $ 3,131.0 | $ (63.0) | $ 19.6 |
| Inspector General | $ 36.4 | $ 37.0 | $ 36.4 | $ – | $ (0.6) |
| TOTAL | $ 18,724.3 | $ 19,000.1 | $ 18,421.3 | $ (303.0) | $ (578.8) |
Chairman Hal Rogers gave the following statement on the introduction of the CR:
“This year, our nation is spending 1.5 trillion dollars more than we have, running our debt to $14 trillion. The taxpayers have told us loud and clear that this is simply unacceptable, and have demanded that we get our nation’s fiscal house in order.
“This CR responds to this call. The legislation includes the largest reduction in discretionary spending in the history of our nation – over five times larger than any other discretionary cut package ever considered by the House.
“The CR contains over $100 billion in cuts compared to the President’s request – fully meeting the spending reduction goal outlined in the Republican ‘Pledge to America’ while providing common sense exceptions for our troops and veterans. These cuts go far and wide, and will affect every community in the nation. These were hard decisions, and I know many people will not be happy with everything we’ve proposed in this package. That’s understandable and not unexpected, but I believe these reductions are necessary to show that we are serious about returning our nation to a sustainable financial path.
“The cuts in this CR are the result of difficult work by our subcommittees who have weeded out excessive, unnecessary, and wasteful spending, making tough choices to prioritize programs based on their effectiveness and benefit to the American people. My committee has taken a thoughtful look at each and every one of the programs we intend to cut, and have made determinations based on this careful analysis.
“It is my intent – and that of my Committee – that this CR legislation will be the first of many Appropriations bills this year that will significantly reduce federal spending. It is important that we complete the legislative process on this bill before March 4th — when the current funding measure expires – to avoid a government-wide shut down and so that we can begin our regular budgetary work for this year.”
NOTE: The CR will be considered on the House floor next week.
A copy of the legislation can be found here.
A summary of the bill can be found here.
A list of program cuts can be found here.
Subcommittee savings tables can be found here.
