Budget Feud’s Next Round Keeps Cuts to Avoid Shutdown

While Congress negotiates a U.S. spending plan for the rest of the budget year, leaders are preserving automatic cuts and seeking ways to give agencies flexibility in implementing the reductions.

That work starts this week with a House vote on Republicans’ proposal to fund the government after current spending authority expires March 27. The House bill retains the $85 billion in cuts that took effect March 1 -- a reduction of 5.8 percent through the fiscal year ending Sept. 30.