CQ Roll Call’s David Lerman and Jennifer Shutt discuss ongoing negotiations for a fourth aid package to address the health care and economic impacts of COVID-19. They break down Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s proposal, where Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell wants additional funding to go and the logistical difficulties of bringing lawmakers back to vote. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Apr 06, 2020•13 min
With COVID-19 legislation taking up all the oxygen on Capitol Hill and lawmakers largely out of town during April, typical appropriations routines have been put on hold. Budget tracker David Lerman and budget and appropriations reporter Jennifer Shutt explain where normal business stands and what could happen as the pandemic continues — especially with another stimulus bill in the works. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Apr 01, 2020•12 min
Funding for managing the coronavirus has been passed and signed by President Trump, but it appears to be just the beginning as the virus impacts more people. CQ Roll Call health care reporter Andrew Siddons joins the podcast to talk about how the money will be used, and what additional steps Congress might take to stimulate the economy and help those hit by the virus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mar 09, 2020•13 min
The Teamsters union’s largest pension fund is famous for appearing as a cash cow for mobsters in movies, most recently "The Irishman," but the reality is the fund is running out of money. CQ Roll Call reporter Doug Sword joins the podcast to explain why the shrinking fund and the projected insolvency of the federal backstop has lawmakers on both sides of the aisle working to find a solution for retirees. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mar 02, 2020•15 min
The race to succeed Nita M. Lowey, chairwoman of the House Appropriations Committee, is already underway. Jennifer Shutt and David Lerman discuss the three official contenders, their experiences on various subcommittees and why discussions are happening so far in advance of the 117th Congress. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Feb 24, 2020•15 min
Military projects championed by key Republican lawmakers will lose $3.8 billion in funding under a Trump administration proposal to divert it to border wall construction. CQ Roll Call senior defense reporter John Donnelly joins Jennifer Shutt and David Lerman to talk about the future of the programs and the effect on the lawmakers representing the districts that would be impacted. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Feb 18, 2020•13 min
The president unveiled his fiscal 2021 budget request Monday. In this episode, we share our key takeaways and some caveats: it's a budget released by a president up for re-election, and it's very challenging for any budget to make it through Congress without significant changes. Plus, we analyze opportunities that have bipartisan support, but a slim chance of implementation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Feb 11, 2020•19 min
House Democrats are making another attempt to pass a big infrastructure spending program, and both parties say they want one. But they've been saying that for years now and there’s been no real progress. So what’s this latest effort about? Jessica Wehrman, transportation and infrastructure reporter for CQ Roll Call joins the podcast to explain what's going on. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Feb 03, 2020•14 min
The House has returned from recess and the impeachment trial continues on, but that's not what has David and Jenn the most excited — they're ready for the Congressional Budget Office to release its annual budget forecast. Jenn and David share their predictions. Plus, earmarks could make a comeback. Jenn explains what's going on. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jan 27, 2020•15 min
There is no room for big increases in FY 2021 appropriations bills, even though veterans health care faces much higher costs. CQ Roll Call reporter Jennifer Shutt joins the podcast to explain where the spending bills are going to be squeezed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jan 21, 2020•16 min
CQ Roll Call reporter Jennifer Shutt joins the podcast to share her predictions on what we can expect from the year to come in the appropriations process. Despite a deal on overall spending limits, election campaign pressures may force another delay in getting appropriations passed on time. We'll also examine a little-noticed provision in a funding bill from last year that has widened a fight among victims of terrorism seeking access to a federal compensation fund. Learn more about your ad choic...
Jan 13, 2020•16 min
Tax reporter Doug Sword sits down with guest host Jennifer Shutt to explain why Congress added so many tax bills to a massive spending package and what exactly those provisions will mean during the upcoming year. CQ Budget delves into what didn't make it into the package and predicts how far those provisions will advance in 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jan 06, 2020•12 min
With fiscal 2020 appropriations finally complete, CQ Roll Call's budget and tax editor Peter Cohn explains what got funded, what it means, and what lies in store for next year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Dec 17, 2019•18 min
A big week in appropriations could end a months-long partisan stalemate on federal funding. Appropriations and congressional leaders are scrambling to negotiate a year-end spending package to fund the government for the remainder of the fiscal year. Also on this episode, we discuss some developments on health care as a few bills move through that could overhaul medicare and drug pricing. CQ Roll Call budget and tax editor Peter Cohn joins the podcast to explain what needs to happen before the re...
Dec 09, 2019•15 min
There’s been talk for months about plans for a year-end package that would extend more than two dozen popular tax breaks that have expired or are expiring. If something’s going to happen, it’s got to happen soon, because there are only three weeks left before the holiday recess. Tax reporter Doug Sword joins the podcast to explain what the outlook is for a year-end tax bill. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Dec 02, 2019•17 min
The impeachment hearings are getting all the attention, but there's other big news on the Hill this week. Congress must fund the government by Thursday to avoid a government shut down. At this point, it seems like everyone is on board, our guest this week says, even President Donald Trump. CQ Roll Call's budget and tax editor Peter Cohn joins the podcast to explain what has to be done to avoid the shutdown and the possibility of spending allocations for the delayed appropriations bills for this ...
Nov 18, 2019•15 min
The Senate Budget Committee drafted legislation for an overhaul of the broken budget process that includes a move toward biennial budgets. But any change is still an uphill fight, as Paul M. Krawzak and Kate Ackley explain. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Nov 12, 2019•19 min
Congress needs to reach agreement on a second continuing resolution before funding runs out on Nov. 21 to avoid a partial government shutdown. But that deadline is going to be difficult to meet. Senior budget reporter Paul M. Krawzak joins the podcast this week to explain where the funding process is now, how the timeline could unfold and the policy issues that continue to split the House and the Senate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Nov 04, 2019•11 min
The fiscal 2019 deficit was up 26 percent over the 2018 level. Paul M. Krawzak unpacks what accounts for the rising red ink. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 28, 2019•13 min
Senate leaders hope to break a weeks-long stalemate by pushing long-delayed spending bills to the floor for votes this week. But the effort will test the ability of the two parties to cooperate when a funding dispute over a border wall still rages, as senior budget reporter Paul M. Krawzak explains. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 21, 2019•16 min
Last week, the House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman, Democrat Nita Lowey of New York, announced she will be retiring from Congress at the end of her term. And that decision immediately set off what could be a contentious battle to succeed her. Why is Lowey stepping down from a position she sought for so long to obtain? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 14, 2019•14 min
The Senate takes up a stopgap funding measure to avoid a government shutdown next month. But the continuing resolution does a lot more than just extend current funding. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 23, 2019•16 min
After months of delay, Senate appropriators finally got to work on their spending bills for the new fiscal year, which begins in just two weeks. But it was a slower start than lawmakers had hoped for, and unlike last year’s effort, it was deeply partisan. The Appropriations Committee approved its overall spending limits for each of its 12 bills, but it wasn’t pretty. Where do they go from here? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 16, 2019•15 min
Congress is finally back in town after a long summer recess and the race is on to avoid a government shutdown before the new fiscal year begins Oct. 1. Not one of the 12 annual spending bills needed to fund the government has cleared the Senate yet and there are only three weeks to go. CQ Budget has a preview of what's to come. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 09, 2019•16 min
Even though Congress is still in a prolonged summer recess, spending battles between the White House and Congress have only been multiplying. The Trump administration plans to divert money from disaster relief and other programs to fund more immigration detention beds and some immigration court facilities - and a lot of senior appropriators aren’t happy about it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 03, 2019•14 min
With worries about a possible recession in the near future, the Trump administration has thrown around the idea of implementing new tax cuts to help stimulate the economy, only to flip flop on the idea multiple times later on. Specifically, the administration has flipped on two types of tax cuts - capital gains indexing, which is favored by Republican senators, and payroll taxes. With the Democrats in control in the House, host Jennifer Shutt sits down with tax reporter Doug Sword to discuss som...
Aug 26, 2019•12 min
House Democrats are pushing new changes to the tax code aimed at helping low income individuals and families, with some lawmakers calling for an increase to the corporate tax rate. In this episode, CQ Roll Call's Doug Sword explains who stands to gain and lose. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Aug 19, 2019•15 min
CQ Roll Call's Budget Editor Peter Cohn combed through the numbers since Congress passed the Budget Control Act of 2011 and found something remarkable: the spending caps produced some results but most of the savings were because of factors out of Congress' hands. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Aug 12, 2019•13 min
Senate Democrats are preparing to fight the Trump administration over a $10,000 limit on deductions for state and local taxes, says CQ Roll Call's budget and tax editor Peter Cohn. And some conservatives are pressing the White House to bypass Congress to index capital gains taxes to inflation, in a move that would cut taxes for wealthy stock owners. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Aug 05, 2019•18 min
With a new budget deal about to become law, CQ Roll Call senior budget reporter Paul M. Krawzak explains how raising the debt limit and raising the spending levels will shape government budget decisions this fall and the year to come. With overall spending limits set, the House will have to revisit the 10 spending bills it has already passed and find $15 billion to cut. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jul 29, 2019•16 min
