Lawmakers look for ways to spare automatic cuts to pentagon budget

The Pentagon is facing the possible cuts because of the failure last year of the so-called supercommittee to agree to a $1.2 trillion deficit-reduction plan. Under legislation that lifted the debt ceiling last year, the supercommittee’s failure triggered $1.2 trillion in cuts to the federal budget that are to be implemented starting in 2013. Roughly half of those cuts are aimed at defense coffers.

For their part, Ryan and House Budget Committee members “share Chairman McKeon’s seriousness in ensuring there are adequate resources devoted to national defense” according to one House GOP aide. Defense spending cuts tied to the sequestration plan are “something that can be dealt with in the context of overall fiscal policy,” the aide added.

{mosads}These talks come at a critical time for both House committee chiefs. Republicans on the House budget panel are in the midst of finalizing a federal spending resolution for fiscal 2013, which is expected to wrap up next week. Committee Republicans, however, continue to bicker over whether to raid domestic discretionary spending or entitlement programs to salvage defense spending, according to recent reports. Meanwhile, McKeon is still pushing his own alternative sequestration plan on Capitol Hill.

The McKeon plan looks to generate savings by cutting the total federal workforce by 10 percent.  Specifically, government agencies will only be allowed to hire one worker for every three who retire, according to the plan. It is similar to a Senate GOP proposal backed by Arizona Republicans Sens. John McCain and John Kyl and Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.).

That Kyl-McCain plan limits two new hires for every three federal employees who retire.

While that will only trim the workforce by five percent, compared to the 10 percent in the McKeon plan, the Kyl-McCain bill calls for the extension of the White House’s federal pay freeze to make up that other five percent.