Discussions are on-going among a small, bipartisan group of Senators who are trying to reduce the total cost of the economic stimulus package (S.1 / H.R.1) in an effort to secure a strong number of supporters when members vote on final passage. Earlier reports pegged the cuts at around $100 billion, but now Politico reports that Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has “presented a counter offer estimated to include about $80 billion in savings.”
The Plum Line has more information on where those cuts would come from:
I’ve just obtained an internal Senate committee memo detailing the latest cuts being eyed by the gang of Senators being led by Dem Ben Nelson and GOPer Susan Collins. Here is what’s being eyed in the bill right now:
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Total Reductions: $80 billion
Eliminations:
Head Start, Education for the Disadvantaged, School improvement, Child Nutrition, Firefighters, Transportation Security Administration, Coast Guard, Prisons, COPS Hiring, Violence Against Women, NASA, NSF, Western Area Power Administration, CDC, Food Stamps
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Reductions:
Public Transit $3.4 billion, School Construction $60 billion
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Increases:
Defense operations and procurement, STAG Grants, Brownfields, Additional transportation funding
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I had read that some members of the Senate Appropriations Committee were becoming frustrated with the amount of spending being cut from projects and programs they voted to fund during committee work on the bill. The Majority Leader’s counter-proposal is likely aimed at making sure their support remains intact.
Congress in Your Pocket
