Time Is Running Out for the Budget Conference Committee

Time Is Running Out for the Budget Conference Committee

WASHINGTON – December 10 – With less than a week remaining before the budget conference committee’s Dec. 13 deadline, reports indicate that negotiators have not yet agreed on a federal spending plan for 2014. Though there is some optimism that a fairly small deal could be reached before Friday, nothing concrete has been released from the closed-door negotiations between House Budget Committee Chair Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., and Senate Budget Committee Chair Patty Murray, D-Wash. National Priorities Project (NPP) issued a statement Tuesday calling out Congress for not acting more quickly develop a budget blueprint that reflects the priorities of the American people.

“Americans have a clear, shared understanding of what the federal budget should look like: we want Congress to protect Social Security and Medicare benefits, reduce waste in the military budget, protect education and safety net programs, close corporate tax loopholes and control health care costs. It’s unconscionable that Congress is up against yet another deadline, and has yet to deliver on one of their most basic obligations to the American people. The budget committee should look to our nation’s shared priorities as its guiding star for a 2014 spending and revenue plan, and get a budget passed in time to avoid another government shutdown,” NPP Executive Director Jo Comerford said.

Congress’s failure to pass appropriations bills before the end of the last fiscal year led to a 16-day government shutdown in early October 2013, costing taxpayers millions of dollars a day and restricting access to critical public services.

NPP experts are available for interviews to explain the ongoing budget logjam, the potential consequences of another failure to pass a budget before federal funds expire and the data illustrating clear priorities of the American people for how tax dollars should be spent.

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The National Priorities Project (NPP) is a 501(c)(3) research organization that analyzes and clarifies federal data so that people can understand and influence how their tax dollars are spent.  Located in Northampton, MA, since 1983, NPP focuses on the impact of federal spending and other policies at the national, state, congressional district and local levels.  For more information, go to http://nationalpriorities.org.