Budget & Taxes (Appropriations)

in committee · United States · Senate Mar 11, 2025

S 936: WEST Act of 2025

This bill imposes a 6% annual tax on the total value of endowments exceeding $11.9 billion for most private universities (or $10.5 billion for state-operated colleges), effective for 2025 taxable years. It directly affects large non-religious private universities meeting these asset thresholds, excluding religious institutions and assets used for their core educational purposes. The tax applies to the end-of-year value of endowment assets not directly supporting the institution's exempt educational mission. This is a direct tax change with no mention of funding allocation or policy outcomes in the bill text.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesImposes 6% tax on large university endowments, generating new state revenue to fund public priorities, aligning with fiscal responsibility and budget management.95% confidence ✗ EducationOpposes EducationImposes tax on large university endowments, reducing funds available for educational programs and operations, aligning with defunding indicators.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Appropriations Higher Education

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in committee · United States · House Apr 7, 2025

HR 2666: CBO Scoring Accountability Act

HR 2666, the CBO Scoring Accountability Act, requires the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to annually analyze and publicly report on the actual costs and revenue impacts of major federal legislation for the first 10 years after it becomes law. It mandates that the CBO compare actual spending/revenue results against prior estimates, and if discrepancies exceed 10% for costs or revenue, the CBO must explain the causes in a report to Congress. This applies to bills projected to affect at least 0.25% of U.S. GDP in spending or revenue (defined as "major legislation"), and federal agencies must provide data to support these analyses. The bill aims to improve transparency around budget estimates without altering legislative processes.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesPromotes fiscal responsibility by requiring CBO to explain budget estimate discrepancies, enhancing transparency in federal spending analysis95% confidence

Sub-Topics Appropriations Audits & Accountability

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in committee · United States · Senate Nov 3, 2025

S 3094: Pay Our Capitol Police Act

This bill ensures Capitol Police officers, employees, and qualifying contractors receive regular pay during a government shutdown starting October 1, 2025. It appropriates funds to cover standard pay, benefits, and contractor support for work performed during the shutdown period, retroactively effective from September 30, 2025. Funds will be charged to future Capitol Police appropriations once regular funding is enacted or by September 30, 2026. The bill directly affects Capitol Police staff and contractors whose work continued during the shutdown, guaranteeing compensation without waiting for new budget bills.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesAppropriates funds to ensure Capitol Police pay during shutdown, directly funding essential government personnel during fiscal disruption.95% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentBill ensures Capitol Police staff receive regular pay during government shutdown, protecting wages and employment security. Directly advances labor & employment by safeguarding worker income during disruptions.90% confidence

Sub-Topics Appropriations

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in committee · United States · House Jan 31, 2025

HR 829: Fighting Budget Waste Act

The Fighting Budget Waste Act requires the President and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to consider the most recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on reducing government waste when preparing the annual federal budget. Specifically, it mandates review of the GAO's findings about cutting fragmentation, duplication, and overlap in federal programs - such as the report titled *Additional Opportunities to Reduce Fragmentation, Overlap, and Duplication and Achieve Billions of Dollars in Financial Benefits* - to identify potential savings. The OMB must also submit a separate report to Congress detailing how it incorporated the GAO's recommendations into the budget submission. This law aims to make the budget process more transparent by formally integrating the GAO's waste-reduction analysis into federal fiscal planning.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesMandates review of GAO report to reduce fragmentation, duplication, and overlap in federal programs, promoting fiscal responsibility through waste reduction.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Appropriations Government Spending

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in committee · United States · Senate Oct 21, 2025

S 3025: Fund Farm Programs Act of 2025

This bill ensures uninterrupted support for farmers by providing emergency funding during government funding gaps. It authorizes the Treasury to cover Farm Service Agency (FSA) program costs - including farm loans - if Congress hasn’t passed full fiscal year 2026 appropriations by September 30, 2025. The funding also covers retroactive costs for services missed from September 30, 2025, through the bill’s enactment date. It ends automatically once regular appropriations for the Department of Agriculture are enacted. The bill directly affects farmers relying on FSA programs during fiscal year 2026 funding delays.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesProvides emergency funding to prevent defunding of FSA programs during budget gaps, ensuring fiscal continuity for farm support.90% confidence

Sub-Topics Appropriations Tags Agriculture

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in committee · United States · Senate Feb 27, 2025

S 810: No Cuts to Public Schools Act

The No Cuts to Public Schools Act (S 810) prevents funding reductions for specific federal education programs by requiring the government to provide additional funds to offset any shortfall compared to 2024 levels. It applies to critical programs like those under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (including Title I, Title III, and other ESEA components). For fiscal years 2025-2027, if a program’s annual budget allocation falls below its 2024 funding level, the bill mandates an equal additional appropriation to restore the full amount. This ensures these programs maintain their 2024 funding levels without changing overall budget authority. The bill directly affects federal budget allocations for these education programs, protecting existing resources from cuts.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesPrevents funding cuts for education programs by mandating additional funds to maintain 2024 levels, directly strengthening public education appropriations under Budget & Taxes.95% confidence ✓ EducationSupports EducationPrevents funding reductions for IDEA/ESEA programs by mandating offsetting funds, ensuring no cuts to 2024 levels for critical education programs.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Appropriations Libraries School Funding

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in committee · United States · House Jun 11, 2025

HR 3912: Stop the Baseline Bloat Act of 2025

HR 3912, the Stop the Baseline Bloat Act of 2025, changes how the federal budget baseline is calculated by excluding emergency funding and supplemental appropriations. This affects the annual budget process by removing these funds from the baseline figure used to measure spending limits under the Budget Control Act. The key provision amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act to specify that emergency requirements and supplemental funding are not counted in the baseline calculation. As a result, future budget targets will reflect only regular appropriations, not additional emergency or supplemental spending.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesBill promotes fiscal responsibility by excluding emergency funds from baseline calculations to prevent spending inflation under Budget Control Act.85% confidence

Sub-Topics Appropriations Government Spending State Budget

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in committee · United States · House Jan 3, 2025

HR 209: Inaction Has Consequences Act

HR 209, the "Inaction Has Consequences Act," requires that if either the House or Senate fails to pass all annual budget bills by the start of a fiscal year (beginning in 2026), the salaries of Members of Congress serving in that chamber will be held in an escrow account. This mechanism directly affects all Representatives and Senators (including delegates and resident commissioners) who serve in the chamber that misses the budget deadline. The escrow holds payments until either the budget bills are passed or the end of the current Congress, whichever comes first. The bill ensures salaries are released automatically on the last day of the Congress if the deadline isn't met. It applies separately to each chamber and defines "regular appropriation bills" as those handled by single subcommittees in each house.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesEnforces timely budget passage via salary escrow, promoting fiscal responsibility and accountability in budget management.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Appropriations

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in committee · United States · House Jan 3, 2025

HJRES 6: Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to provide for balanced budgets for the Government.

This joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment prohibiting total outlays for a fiscal year from exceeding total receipts for that fiscal year unless Congress authorizes the excess by a two-thirds roll call vote of each chamber. The amendment also requires the President to submit an annual budget in which total outlays for the fiscal year do not exceed total receipts. Congress may waive the requirements for any fiscal year in which (1) a declaration of war is in effect by a roll call vote, or (2) a declaration of a natural disaster or a national emergency is in effect that was declared by a joint resolution that became law after being adopted by a majority of each chamber of Congress.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesMandates balanced budgets, promoting fiscal responsibility by prohibiting outlays exceeding receipts without supermajority approval.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Appropriations State Budget

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in committee · United States · House Jan 3, 2025

HJRES 7: Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to prohibit Members of Congress from receiving compensation during a fiscal year unless both Houses of Congress have agreed to a concurrent resolution on the budget for that fiscal year prior to the beginning of that fiscal year.

This constitutional amendment would require Congress to approve a budget resolution before the start of each fiscal year for members to receive pay. It directly affects all 535 current and future members of Congress. The key provision prohibits compensation during any fiscal year unless both the House and Senate agree to an identical budget resolution prior to that year’s start date. If ratified, this would tie congressional pay to timely budget passage, requiring budget agreement before the fiscal year begins.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesRequires timely budget passage for congressional pay, promoting fiscal responsibility through mandatory budget process adherence.90% confidence

Sub-Topics Appropriations State Budget

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