National Security Legislative Calendar
May 5, 2008
[New information bolded and italicized]
Last week, the Senate Armed Services Committee completed its mark up of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2009 Defense Authorization Bill (see below). The marked up bill fully funds the administration’s $612.5 billion FY2009 national defense request, as did the FY2009 Budget Resolution passed by the Senate on March 13, by authorizing $542.5 billion in "base" budgetary authority and $70 billion in war funding.
Bush sent to Congress last week specifics of the $70 billion "bridge" war funding request for Fiscal Year 2009. If Congress bundles residual FY2008 funding with this advance FY2009 funding, the resulting "super supplemental" could reach $178 billion, or more.
There is still no definitive plan of attack on the residual Fiscal Year 2008 Supplemental Appropriations Bill to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Last year, Congress approved $86 billion in FY2008 war funding. The timing, composition and procedures for the remaining funding, which President Bush has threatened to veto if over $108 billion, are still up in the air.
The supplemental may be considered in three separate parts: war funding of around $170 billion, language calling on the administration to begin bringing troops home, and a domestic spending component that could include extended unemployment benefits, energy tax credits and a new GI bill for veterans’ education.
The House Armed Services Committee is scheduled to complete subcommittee mark-ups on its version of the FY2009 Defense Authorization Bill this week. The full committee is scheduled to mark up the bill on May 14, with floor consideration expected the week of May 19.
KEY NATIONAL SECURITY BILLS TO BE CONSIDERED IN 2008
FISCAL YEAR 2008 SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATION BILL
Confusion continues to reign over the remainder of the Fiscal Year 2008 Supplemental Appropriations Bill to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Last year, Congress approved a first portion of funding: $86 billion. The timing, the composition and the procedures for the new bill are still up in the air.
The major questions about the bill remain:
=While the new supplemental was supposed to be about $108 billion, will Congress add another $70 billion to fund the wars into Fiscal Year 2009 in order to avoid new votes on war funding in the fall just before the election and early next year while the President is setting up the new Administration?
=Will the bill include many non-defense add-ons? As this bill is one of the few expected to be enacted into law during calendar 2008, there are hopes to attach an economic stimulus package, as well as funding for shortfalls in 2010 census funding shortfall, fighting wildfires, Head Start and creating a summer jobs program.
=Will the bill move directly to the House or Senate floors for consideration or will the Appropriations Committees take up the bill first?
=Will the bill include provisions setting a deadline for bringing U.S. troops home from Iraq, mandates for training and equipping troops, longer rest time between deployments, blocking a long-term commitment to the Iraqi government, requiring U.S. reconstruction assistance to be designated as loans to Iraq and increasing education benefits for veterans?
=Will the measure be considered as one bill or be split into two or three parts so anti-war Members of Congress can vote for provisions they like while opposing funding for the war in Iraq.
Stay tuned
FISCAL YEAR 2009 DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION BILL
On February 4, the President sent the annual military budget to Congress. The budget totaled $515.4 billion for Pentagon activities. However, adding funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan (estimated by Defense Secretary Robert Gates at roughly $170 billion) plus the nuclear weapons portion of the Department of Energy budget, the total exceeds $700 billion. The Senate and House Budget Committees will take the first legislative action on the budget.
Last week, the Senate Armed Services Committee completed its mark up of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2009 Defense Authorization Bill. The marked up bill fully funds the administration’s $612.5 billion FY2009 national defense request, as did the FY2009 Budget Resolution passed by the Senate on March 13, by authorizing $542.5 billion in "base" budgetary authority and $70 billion in war funding.
The House Armed Services Committee is scheduled to complete subcommittee mark-ups on its version of the FY2009 Defense Authorization Bill this week. The full committee is scheduled to mark up the bill on May 14, with floor consideration expected the week of May 19.
Click here for a more detailed analysis of the budget.
FISCAL YEAR 2009 BUDGET RESOLUTION
Both chambers approved the Fiscal Year 2009 Budget Resolution. There were no challenges in the Senate to the military budget requested by the Bush Administration: $542 billion for defense budget authority (function 050 in the budget) plus $70 billion as a down payment for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. In the House, Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) offered a Progressive Caucus alternative budget that would have cut the defense budget authority to $468 billion, $69 billion less than requested. The amendment failed 98 - 322.
However, when considering the "soft power"portion of the federal budget (including the State Department budget, peacekeeping, international organizations and foreign assistance), the Senate voted 73 - 23 for a Biden (D-DE) - Lugar (R-IN) amendment to restore $4.1 billion to the international affairs budget that the Senate Budget Committee had cut. As the Senate has now approved the Administration request of $39.8 billion and the House approved $1.5 billion less, the final number will have to be worked out in a House-Senate conference.
A House-Senate conference to resolve differences between the two versions of the Fiscal Year 2009 Budget Resolution is on-going. OMB Watch reports on April 23: The House and Senate remain at loggerheads over agreement to a FY 2009 budget resolution. At the center of the dispute is a one-year $70 billion Alternative Minimum Tax fix, which is is fully offset in the House budget but not in the Senate version. House Blue Dogs have signaled that they will only support a paid-for AMT patch, while Republican and a few Democratic Senators are adamant in opposing any offsets. On the spending side, the budgets are some $3.5 billion apart, with the Senate version providing a $35 billion reserve fund to pay for a second round of economic stimulus.
FISCAL YEAR 2009 DEFENSE APPROPRIATIONS BILL
FISCAL YEAR 2009 ENERGY AND WATER APPROPRIATIONS BILL
FISCAL YEAR 2009 STATE, FOREIGN OPERATIONS APPROPRIATIONS BILL
FISCAL YEAR 2009 SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS BILL
Note: There is widespread speculation that Congress will not pass many or any of the Fiscal Year 2009 Appropriations Bill, both because of a short legislative season and because majority Democrats will hope to produce better bills signed by a Democratic President in 2009.
IRAQ WAR MEASURES
On February 26, the Senate began to consider two measures related to Iraq introduced by Sen. Russell Feingold (D-WI). The first measure would have cut funding for U.S. troops 120 days after enactment of the measure except for specified purposes, including bringing the troops home. The second measure would required an Administration report to Congress on its strategy for combating al Qaeda. Surprisingly, Senate Republicans, eager to discuss what they believe to be a successful surge in Iraq, decided to vote for cloture on both measures. On February 26, the Senate voted 70 - 24 on the motion to proceed to debate on the first Feingold bill. On February 27, the Senate voted 89 to 3 to end debate on the motion to proceed to the second Feingold measures. But after a hefty three days of debate, both measures were withdrawn without a final vote.
KEY NATIONAL SECURITY BILLS REMAINING FROM 2007
FISCAL YEAR 2008 SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS BILL
As Congress left town in December, it approved $70 billion of the estimated $196 billion Fiscal Year Supplemental Appropriations Bill to pay for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. The bill was called a "bridge," in that it would provide temporary funding for current operations until the full amount could be considered later this year. Congress is expected to consider the remainder of the money -- about $120 billion -- in March or April.
Earlier versions of the measure would have required some U.S. troop withdrawals from Iraq to begin 30 days after the bill was enacted, and it set a goal -- but not a requirement -- that most troops be brought home by December 15, 2008. In addition to these measures, the bill required more time at home between tours of duty in Iraq, banned waterboarding and other torture techniques, and prohibited the establishment of permanent bases in Iraq. The House approved the bill by a 218 - 203 vote. The Senate refused to bring up the bill; it voted 53 - 45 in favor of beginning debate, but 60 votes were required and the bill died. Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) tried to bring up a $70 billion bill to pay for the wars that had no restrictions, but his measure died 45 - 53.
On December 18, the Senate approved the Omnibus Appropriations bill that included the $70 billion to pay for the wars by a vote of 76 - 17 after adopting a McConnell (R-KY) motion to appropriate the $70 billion with no conditions. On December 19, the House approved the $70 billion without any conditions by a vote of 272 - 142.
WIRETAPPING AND WATERBOARDING
On February 12, the Senate approved continued surveillance of Americans by a 68 - 29 vote, with 19 Democrats voting in favor. The major difference between the Senate and House-passed bills is whether to provide retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies that participated in warrantless surveillance. On February 13, the Senate approved the Intelligence Authorization bill (HR 2082) which included language that bars the use of waterboarding as an interrogation technique. The vote was 51 - 45. The President vetoed the bill because of this restriction, and there are not sufficient votes to overcome the veto. On March 12, the House voted 225 - 188 to override the veto, but failed to gain the two-thirds vote required.
| 2008 Congressional Recess Schedule | |
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May 23 - June 3 June 27 - July 8 Aug. 1 - Sept. 8 Aug. 8 - Sept. 8 |
Memorial Day recess Independence Day recess House summer recess Senate summer recess |
| Reminder: Each year, defense bills go through a five or six stage process: | ||
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ON THE HORIZON: NATIONAL SECURITY LEGISLATIVE ISSUES
ACTION COMPLETED IN 2007
Highlights of Congressional Action in 2007 on National Security
Reliable Replacement Warhead (RRW) Program
Administration Request: $88.8 million for the Department of Energy; $30 million for the Department of Defense, for a total of $118.8 million
Final Action: $0 for the Department of Energy; $15 million for the Department of Defense
Reprocessing Nuclear Waste
Administration Request: $405 million
Final Action: $179 million (as part of Department of Energy Appropriations)
Total Funding for Nonproliferation Programs (including programs funded through the Defense Department, State Department, and Department of Energy)
Administration Request: 3.36 billion
Final Action: 3.683 billion
Notable Threat Reduction Programs Included Within the Above Totals
Cooperative Threat Reduction (Nunn-Lugar Program)
Administration Request: $348 million
Final Action: $428 million
Global Threat Reduction Initiative (GTRI)
Administration Request: $115.5 million
Final Action: $195 million (as part of Department of Energy appropriations)
International Nuclear Material Protection & Cooperation
Administration Request: $371 million
Final Action: $603.2 million (as part of Department of Energy appropriations)
Space Test Bed (i.e. space-based missile defense)
Administration Request: $10 million
Final Action: $0
Missile Defense Programs
Administration Request: $10.3 billion (includes missile defense, research and development, and procurement)
Final Action: $9.9 billion ($85 million was ultimately cut from the $310 million requested to begin deployment of anti-missile interceptors in Poland and an associated radar in the
Czech Republic)
Conventional Trident Modification Program (to equip Trident II submarine-launched long-range missiles with non-nuclear warheads)
Administration Request: $175 million
Final Action: $0 ($100 million was appropriated solely for alternatives to the Conventional Trident Modification Program)
Democracy Promotion in Iran (i.e. regime change slush fund)
Administration Request: $108.71 million
Final Action: $60 million (as part of Foreign Operations Appropriations)
Total Defense Spending (excluding the conduct of ongoing military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan)
Administration Request: $452.2 billion
Final Action: $448.7 billion
Iraq and Afghanistan War Cost
Administration Request: $196 billion in Supplemental Appropriations Bill
Final Action thus far: $87 billion (including $70 billion for general military operations and nearly $17 billion for Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles)
