A rare budget tool, used again
The White House said late on Friday that it would cancel $810 million in spending that Congress had already approved, using a rarely used budget device known as a pocket rescission. The announcement drew criticism from lawmakers in both parties, days before the fiscal year ends on September 30.
The largest single item was $567 million in Health and Human Services funding for programmes that serve noncitizens. Other cuts targeted health and education services, and support for immigrants, refugees and minority-owned businesses.
The White House described the rejected money as the most harmful government spending, and said the president would keep using every tool available to cut programmes that do not benefit American citizens.
Lawmakers push back
Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins said lawmakers were told about the rescissions without warning or consultation. She said the Office of Management and Budget appeared to have held the money back for months in order to execute what she called an unlawful cancellation of appropriations that were approved on a bipartisan basis and signed into law.
The Government Accountability Office has said pocket rescissions are illegal. This is the second time the administration has used the tactic. Last year's attempt drew a legal challenge over foreign aid projects, and the Supreme Court allowed the cancellation to proceed without deciding the underlying legal question.
Timing works against Congress
Because the fiscal year ends on September 30, the money lapses if it is not spent. The House is not due back until after the midterm elections in November, which limits how quickly lawmakers could respond with legislation.
Democrats and some Republicans said the move takes spending power away from the legislature and hands it to the executive branch. Legal analysts expect the dispute to end up in court again, where the outcome may hinge on how quickly the funds expire.