House OKs Transportation-HUD bill
The $67.4 billion in discretionary funding is $1.3 billion below Obama's request.
The House late Thursday approved the fiscal 2011 Transportation-HUD Appropriations bill, 251-167, the second spending bill to pass the House. It sparked deep partisan divisions, with only 14 Republicans backing the bill and 13 Democrats opposed.
House Appropriations Committee Chairman Rep. David Obey, D-Wis., called it a "fiscally responsible jobs bill" and stressed that its $67.4 billion in discretionary funding is $1.3 billion below President Obama's request and $500 million below the fiscal 2010 bill.
But House Appropriations Committee ranking member Rep. Jerry Lewis, R-Calif., looking to tap in to voter angst over Washington spending, urged his colleagues to vote against the bill on grounds it is too generous. He noted the deficit for fiscal 2010 is expected to be about 10 percent of gross domestic product, the largest as a share of the economy since World War II, according to the Office of Management and Budget's mid-session review released last week.
"The only way out of this deficit and debt nightmare is to curb Uncle Sam's appetite for spending," Lewis said.
Republicans also noted the fiscal 2010 bill was 23 percent over the fiscal 2009 measure.
But Democrats managed to reject a series of Republican amendments seeking to cut funding from the bill, including a proposal from Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, that would have reduced the spending by $18.6 billion to bring it down to fiscal 2008 levels. The amendment was defeated, 265-159.
Overall, the House rejected 12 amendments and approved 10, including a proposal from several Democrats representing areas with high foreclosure rates to eliminate travel funds for HUD. Sponsors argued that HUD officials should not travel on business until they address the nation's housing crisis.
Rep. Dennis Cardoza, D-Calif., noted that HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan took a trip with a delegation to Brazil last March and argued "he should have stayed here" to focus on the foreclosure epidemic.
The House measure would provide $45.2 billion for highway construction, which is about $4.1 billion above what was provided in fiscal 2010 and $3.9 billion above Obama's request. Public transit initiatives would receive $11.3 billion, $500 million above the fiscal 2010 level and $575 million above Obama's request.
The bill also would provide $4.35 billion for HUD's Community Development Block Grant, which is $97.9 million above what was provided in fiscal 2010 and $28 million below Obama's request.
The House bill contains slightly less discretionary spending than the $67.9 billion package approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee last week. The Senate measure includes $41.8 billion for highway construction, $10.8 billion for transit programs, and $3.99 billion for HUD's Community Development Block Grant.