Federal Appropriations Update

The federal Fiscal Year of 2012 (FY 2012) began on October 1, 2011, and Federal program funding is currently being provided under the authority of a Continuing Resolution (CR) that ends on November 18, 2011.  Since it is extremely unlikely that final appropriations bills will all be passed by November 18, it is widely expected that another CR will be needed after November 18, to authorize Federal spending until until late December, when Congress is supposed to consider the deficit package that would aim to save nearly $1.2 trillion over the next ten years (see background here).

In the meantime, the Senate has begun work on a series of “minibuses;” a combination of several appropriations measures (background here). This minibus approach will allow the Senate and House to form a Conference Committee to reconcile differences between the various appropriation bills, including consideration of appropriations measures that passed the respective Senate and House Appropriation Committees but were never considered by the full chamber.