Top Democratic appropriator presses agency heads for impact of proposed GOP spending cuts

Rep. Rosa DeLauro (Conn.), the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, on Thursday sent letters to various agency heads on potential impacts of significant caps on government spending floated by Republicans.  

The nearly two dozen letters went out to leaders at various government agencies, including the departments of Defense, State, Treasury, Housing and Urban Development, Education, and Veterans Affairs; the Social Security Administration; and more.

In the letters, DeLauro asks the chiefs for analyses on what a proposal to cap discretionary spending at fiscal 2022 levels would mean for their agencies. The letters come as some lawmakers have said Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) agreed to seek the cuts as part of the concessions made by the leader to secure the Speaker’s gavel earlier this month.

“A preliminary examination of this blueprint suggests this proposed policy would harm communities across the country and our national security interests around the world,” DeLauro writes.

“My analysis indicates that taking discretionary spending back to the fiscal year 2022 level could roll back bipartisan efforts recently enacted to lower the cost of living for hard working families; create better-paying jobs; support federal, state, and local law enforcement; strengthen our national security; and protect our environment,” she continues, while asking for responses by early next month.

Republicans have been pressing for McCarthy to use the debt limit, which Congress will have to address this year to prevent an unprecedented default, to obtain significant spending cuts and potential fiscal reforms as concessions from Democrats.

By contrast, Democrats have pressed for a clean bill to either raise or suspend the nation’s borrowing limit, which caps how much outstanding national debt can be held by the government to fulfill its financial duties.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said last week that her office will likely resort to “extraordinary measures” to keep the nation from defaulting on its debt beginning on Thursday, as the government crosses the roughly $31.4 trillion borrowing limit set by Congress more than a year ago.