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Md., Va. Senators Prepare to Fight Proposed Cuts To Area Programs
| Source: |
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Washington Post (DC) |
| Date: |
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Friday, February 25, 2011 |
| Author: |
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Ben Pershing |
When U.S. senators return to Capitol Hill next week to decide how to deal with a House-passed budget-cutting bill, the neighbors will be watching closely.
The House measure, which proposes to slice more than $60 billion in federal spending, would be particularly acute in the Washington area. The flow of federal money into local coffers would be curtailed, and policy changes opposed by many regional officials could become mandates.
If enacted, the House bill would cut $150 million from the Metro system's budget for capital projects. It would block the Environmental Protection Agency from implementing its sweeping plan to clean up the Chesapeake Bay. It would slice $80 million from the District's budget for courts, schools and other programs. And it would re-impose controversial "riders" preventing the District from spending its money on needle-exchange programs and abortions for low-income women.
More broadly, the House bill's proposed funding levels could require layoffs for thousands of federal employees, many of whom live in the Washington region.
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In the District, the federal government's funding for the city would take an $80 million hit, and D.C. would face the same restrictions on needle-exchange programs
and abortions that were in place the last time Republicans controlled Congress. If House Republicans insist on the restrictions, it's not clear how hard Senate Democrats will be willing to fight against them.
After the House vote, Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) said she was "rounding up Senate allies who, along with the Obama administration, are committed to preserving D.C.'s home-rule rights and dignity as a local jurisdiction."
Beyond those specific policy prescriptions, the House's bill would also have a broader impact on the local economy.
Stephen Fuller, the director of the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University, estimates that federal spending fuels one-third of the D.C. metropolitan area's $410 billion economy. Any significant cut in government outlays - or layoffs of federal employees - would hit the region hard.
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Read the full article by clicking the link below:
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02 /24/AR2011022407695_pf.html
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