WASHINGTON — The Concord Coalition expressed frustration today over Washington’s need for repeated short-term stop-gap funding measures and the inclusion of policies in them that will further increase the deficit.
“It’s good that the impasse leading to a partial government shutdown has been resolved for at least three weeks,” said Robert L. Bixby, Concord’s executive director. “It is absurd that while doing that, Congress included over $30 billion in tax cuts and that nearly a third of the way through the fiscal year it has still failed to pass full-year appropriations.”
The repeated use of stop-gap funding measures — also known as “continuing resolutions” — is the result of another breakdown in the congressional budget process. Spending legislation for Fiscal 2018 should have been approved before the year began Oct. 1.
Continuing resolutions generally continue federal spending at current levels, regardless of changing needs and priorities. The temporary measures also lead to costly inefficiencies and sometimes — as has just been demonstrated — government shutdowns.
“Congress and the president should focus on quickly reaching agreement on responsible spending plans for the rest of the fiscal year,” Bixby said. “Under current law the government is already on course to increase the debt by more than $11 trillion over the next 10 years. Bipartisan cooperation and compromise will be needed to find ways to get the government on a more sustainable path.”
Media Contact: Steve Winn, [email protected], (703) 254-7828
