Here is today’s CEF update. As Sheryl notes, the CR has an across-the-board cut of 0.19% to stay under the BCA cap – obviously once spread out that has a fairly negligible impact. Note the CR goes until April 28. I predict they will eventually end up just doing another one to cover the rest of FY 17 so they can focus on FY 18. But we’ll ave to see... One of the “Other noteworthy anomalies” is possibly problematic: this business of "expedited consideration of legislation to waive the existing requirement that the Secretary of Defense must have been retired from active duty for at least seven years.” Democrats and some Republicans object to this, and some Dems strongly. Last night at WH meeting it sounded to me like President wants to support Democratic objections but stopped way short of a veto threat over this. Again, we’ll see… Jeff > Begin forwarded message: > > From: Sheryl Cohen <cohen@cef.org> > Subject: CEF Update 12.7.16 - CR through April 28 > Date: December 7, 2016 at 9:31:46 AM EST > To: CEFMembersList <CEFMembersList@cef.org> > > > > > Wednesday, December 7, 2016 > > Dear CEF Members: > > · Long-term CR freezes funding through April 28 – Tuesday night House Republicans published a continuing resolution (CR) that freezes most government funding at 2016 levels through April 28, 2017. The House Rules Committee posted the text (click here for PDF <http://docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/20161205/CPRT-114-HPRT-RU00-SAHR2028.pdf> orXML <http://docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/20161205/CPRT-114-HPRT-RU00-SAHR2028.xml>) of the Further Continuing and Security Assistance Appropriations Act, 2017. For different takes on the legislation, summaries are available from House Appropriations Committee Republicans <http://appropriations.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=394665> and Democrats <http://democrats.appropriations.house.gov/sites/democrats.appropriations.house.gov/files/wysiwyg_uploaded/Summary%20of%20Dec2016%20CR.pdf>. The House plans to take up the bill Thursday and the Senate on Friday, but Democrats do not support all parts of the bill. > > · Topline numbers – The bill has an across-the-board cut of 0.19% to stay under the Budget Control Act’s post-sequester discretionary cap for 2017 – a cut that is smaller than the 0.496% cut in the CR that expires on Friday. Outside the caps, the bill has $4.1 billion in emergency funding for response to recent disasters, and $10.1 billion in Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funding, of which $5.8 billion is for defense priorities and $4.3 billion for non-defense priorities, mostly for State Department needs. > > · Education-related “anomalies” in the CR – > > o Funding for account maintenance fees in the Federal Family Education Loan program that were necessary to ensure payments to state and nonprofit guaranty agencies in January; > o making available unobligated funds from previous years for a school voucher program in the District of Columbia (the Scholarships for Opportunity and Results (SOAR) Act); > o funding to maintain both the summer Electronic Benefit Transfer food program for low-income children who get meals at school during the academic year, and the Child Nutrition Information Clearinghouse; > > · Other noteworthy anomalies – $872 million for the 21st Century Cures Act (this includes an increase for the National Institutes of Health, which could lessen the pressure to include all of the increases the House and Senate Appropriations Committees included within their Labor-HHS-Education bill’s allocation, which could possibly free up some funding for other programs within those bills); $170 million for Flint, Michigan, to address contaminated drinking water and related health problems; extending miners’ health program; and providing expedited consideration of legislation to waive the existing requirement that the Secretary of Defense must have been retired from active duty for at least seven years -- President-elect Trump’s nominee left the military only four years ago (Democrats object, as it would limit their ability to debate the change). > > My best, > > Sheryl > > > Sheryl V. Cohen, Executive Director > 1800 M Street, NW > Suite 500 South > Washington, DC 20036 > T: 202-327-8125 > cohen@cef.org <mailto:cohen@cef.org> > www.cef.org <http://www.cef.org/>