Director’s Desk
Kristin Nicholson | March 12, 2024
Dear Friends,
“It’s a huge month for appropriations” isn’t always something we say about March, but nothing is normal on the Hill these days. Now that six FY24 funding bills have finally reached the President’s desk, we look to the next (partial) shutdown deadline ten days away. With huge, complicated bills like Defense and Labor-HHS-Education yet to be finalized appropriators will have a heavy lift, but signs seem hopeful.
Meanwhile, President Biden’s FY25 budget proposal just landed on the Hill. As our former students will no doubt recall, this proposal is not immediately thrown in the trash as conventional wisdom would have you believe. Rather, Appropriations Committee staff are digging into the details of every agency’s budget justification and will be preparing for weeks of information-gathering through hearings and hundreds of briefings. Don’t forget: we can help your organization prepare more effective and informative appropriation justifications. Let us know if we can tailor a class for your team.
In this month’s newsletter, Senior Fellow Laura Blessing shares her insights on the political and procedural constraints on House Speaker Johnson, and what they have meant for productivity in the House. Finally, following Senator McConnell’s announcement that he will relinquish his leadership role at the end of this Congress, Senior Fellows Josh Huder and Matt Glassman were featured in this excellent Politico roundup of congressional experts’ thoughts on McConnell’s legacy.
As DC prepares to burst into full bloom, we wish you a wonderful spring!
Kristin
Categories: Director's Desk, Media Center, Updates