The budget deal struck on government funding for the rest of this fiscal year has a series of spending restrictions on various arms of the Obama Administration.
Some may make sense to you. Others show just how controlling the Congress can be at times.
The bill has the phrase "none of the funds" in 75 different places. The first is an effort by the Congress to stop the Pentagon from streamlining the operations of the military.
"Provided further, That none of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used to plan or implement the consolidation of a budget or appropriations liaison office of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the office of the Secretary of a military department, or the service headquarters of one of the Armed Forces."
This could well be an effort to block plans from Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, who has said he wants to eliminate the Joint Forces Command, which is located in Norfolk, Virginia - all part of a $78 billion plan from Gates to streamline military operations and save money.
Virginia lawmakers have hotly opposed that effort, saying it will cost them thousands of jobs in the region.
And later on in the bill, those lawmakers get to the point:
SEC. 8119. None of the funds appropriated or other wise made available to the Department of Defense may be used for the disestablishment, closure, or realignment of the Joint Forces Command," reads the bill, which then lists a series of hoops and hurdles that the Pentagon would have to comply with to shut down the Joint Forces Command.
The same type of provision is used to block the Obama Administration from setting up a climate change department inside NOAA, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration:
"SEC. 1348. None of the funds made available by this division may be used to implement, establish, or create a NOAA Climate Service as described in the Draft NOAA Climate Service Strategic Vision and Framework," the bill reads.
Like many provisions, that prohibition would only last until the end of the fiscal year, September 30, 2011.
Here's an interesting one on aviation security:
"Provided further, That none of the funds in this division may be used for any recruiting or hiring of personnel into the Transportation Security Administration that would cause the agency to exceed a staffing level of 46,000 full-time equivalent screeners" - but if you read on in the bill - "Provided further, That the preceding proviso shall not apply to personnel hired as part-time employees."
So, 46,000 is the limit, but the TSA can go over that if they hire part-time workers.
Here is one that everyone can understand, which blocks any money for certain White House "Czars":
"SEC. 2262. None of the funds made available by this division may be used to pay the salaries and expenses for the following positions:
- (1) Director, White House Office of Health Reform.
- (2) Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change.
- (3) Senior Advisor to the Secretary of the Treasury assigned to the Presidential Task Force on the Auto Industry and Senior Counselor for Manufacturing Policy.
- (4) White House Director of Urban Affairs. So, there's a little peek into the budget deal. As you can tell, it's about a lot more than just how much money goes to what departments of the federal government.
