Senate panel advances $4.3B bill to fund legislative branch

The Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday in a 27-3 vote advanced a $4.31 billion bill funding the legislative branch for fiscal 2016, which begins Oct. 1.

“This appropriations bill could be considered small, but it has an outsize impact on day-to-day operations of the government,” Chairman Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) said.

The bill provides $9 million more than current levels, but $220 million less than President Obama’s request.

{mosads}“Because of the flat allocation, this bill falls far short of fully funding GAO to restore staffing capacity lost for short-sighted budget cuts. The bill also relies on cuts to campus maintenance to balance the Legislative Branch budget, which is unsustainable,” said Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), ranking member of the Appropriations Legislative Branch Subcommittee, which oversees the bill.

“As the Capitol Police face new security challenges, we need to have full funding to protect the millions of visitors to the campus each year,” he added.

The bill contains funding for the Senate, as well as the House, which the lower chamber has already passed separately.

The Capitol Police would receive $366.5 million, which is $18.5 million above current levels and $12.4 million below Obama’s request.

The bill includes funding for the congressional committee that would be tasked with preparing for the 2017 presidential inauguration.

The Architect of the Capitol, the Government Accountability Office, the Government Publishing Office and the Library of Congress also receive funding in the bill.