Tag: Budget

‘That’s a Lie’: GOP Senator Presses Janet Yellen on Plan to Pay for Social Security

Ohio Star Staff

Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana accused the Biden administration of lying about its commitment to working with Congress to protect seniors’ social security benefits at a hearing of the Senate Finance Committee Thursday.

Cassidy asked Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who was testifying about President Joe Biden’s proposed budget for the fiscal year 2024, if the president was aware that “when [Social Security] goes broke in nine years” there would be a 24% cut in benefits for current recipients.

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Commentary: Despite ‘Strong’ Rhetoric, Biden Administration Signals Gloomy Economic Outlook

Admin

The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in the now-released President’s Budget is projecting just 0.6 percent in inflation-adjusted real growth of the U.S. economy in 2023 as the unemployment rate is expected to rise to 4.3 percent in 2023 and peak at 4.6 percent in 2024 after the economy is finished overheating from the continued, elevated inflation, consumers max out on credit and spending falls off a cliff.

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Fiscal Hawks Warn Biden: No Debt Ceiling Deal Without Fiscal Reforms

M.D. Kittle

The fiscal hawks are sticking to their guns. On Friday, Sens. Ron Johnson (R-WI) and J.D. Vance (R-OH) joined 22 of their fellow Republican senators in a letter warning President Joe Biden that they will not vote for increasing the debt ceiling without structural reforms to the federal government’s budget and debt problems.

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House Speaker Fight Foreshadows Larger Debt Ceiling Battle on the Horizon for Republicans

Admin

The gridlock that paralyzed House Republicans over the past week in their quest to elect a new Speaker could be a foretaste of more to come, with party moderates and conservatives set to tangle in the months to come over raising the debt ceiling and reining in reckless government spending.

Although newly elected Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy ultimately prevailed in his bid for the office over a small but determined band of House Freedom Caucus members, his slim GOP majority in the House will be vulnerable if and when conservatives rebel again down the road, as some are predicting, in an effort to reassert debt reduction as a top priority for the party.

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Republican Leadership Pledges to ‘Repeal’ IRS Auditor Expansion if GOP Wins Majority

The Center Square

President Joe Biden sparked controversy for pushing through Congress increased federal funding for 87,000 new IRS employees to audit Americans, but Republican leadership has pledged to overturn that expansion if they win the majority.

House Republican Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., pledged at a Pennsylvania event to “repeal” the IRS expansion.

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Commentary: The Fed’s Interest Rate Hikes Have only Destroyed $398 Billion of the $6 Trillion It Printed

Admin

“Our expectation has been we would begin to see inflation come down, largely because of supply side healing.  We haven’t. We have seen some supply side healing but inflation has not really come down.”

That was Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Sept. 21, speaking to reporters following the central bank’s meeting where the Federal Funds Rate was once again increased 0.75 percent to its current range of 3 percent to 3.25 percent in a bid to combat sticky 8.3 percent consumer inflation the past year.

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Yellen to Testify on Biden Budget After Admitting She Was Wrong on Inflation

The Center Square

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen will testify before the Senate Finance Committee Tuesday, just days after she admitted she was wrong about inflation earlier in President Joe Biden’s term.

The hearing, which is on “the president’s fiscal year 2023 budget” will only feature testimony from Yellen, according to the committee’s website.

Biden’s budget likely will be under extra scrutiny as gas prices continue to hit record highs and inflation rises at the fastest level in decades.

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Commentary: Biden’s Budget of Taxes, Taxes and More Taxes

Ohio Star Staff

Inflation is running rampant, federal spending is out of control, gas prices are at an all-time high and Americans are pessimistic on the future outlook of the economy. So what is President Joe Biden’s solution?

He has released a budget proposal that includes 36 tax increases on families and businesses totaling $2.5 trillion over the next decade. Alarmingly, this includes 11 tax increases on the oil and gas industry, taxes that will put a burden on households.

The budget doesn’t even include all the tax increases being pushed by Democrats because the budget omits the cost of tax increases within their stalled multi-trillion dollar Build Back Better Act. Instead of detailing these tax increases, the Biden budget includes a placeholder asserting that any new spending will be fully offset.

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White House Says Reconciliation Bill Will Spend More on Climate Than Entire Energy Department

Ohio Star Staff

The Democrats’ reconciliation package will likely include more than $500 billion worth of climate provisions, more than the entire Department of Energy budget, the White House said, according to The Hill.

The budget represents an opportunity for “historic investment in climate change,” White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain said during an event hosted by The Hill on Tuesday evening. The likely price tag for climate programs included in the bill is likely to fall somewhere between $500 billion and $555 billion, Axios previously reported.

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Commentary: Biden’s Desperate Race to the Lying Bottom

Ohio Star Staff

On Monday, Joe Biden uncorked the largest lie of a 50-year political career overstuffed with them.

“My Build Back Better Agenda costs zero dollars,” he tweeted. “Instead of wasting money on tax breaks, loopholes, and tax evasion for big corporations and the wealthy, we can make a once-in-a-generation investment in working America. And it adds zero dollars to the national debt.”

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Manchin Reportedly Calls on Democrats to Push Budget Back to 2022

Ohio Star Staff
Joe Manchin

Democratic West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin reportedly said in private that the “strategic pause” he has pushed for regarding his party’s budget should last through the end of the year.

Manchin’s remarks, first reported by Axios, would mean a sharp departure from Democrats’ long-stated goals, which include passing both the budget and the bipartisan infrastructure bills before the end of September.

His remarks align both with a Wall Street Journal op-ed he wrote earlier this month and recent comments he made calling for a “pause” on the budget as Congress addressed other priorities ranging from a messy Afghanistan withdrawal to multiple natural disasters.

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Democrats Plan to Hike Taxes to Pay for Their $3.5 Trillion Budget

Ohio Star Staff

House Democrats will consider nearly $3 trillion in tax hikes over the next decade in an attempt to pay for their $3.5 trillion budget that includes most of President Joe Biden’s domestic agenda and would overhaul the nation’s social safety net.

The hikes are predominantly focused on wealthy Americans and large corporations. Among the increases is a top income tax bracket of 39.6%, up from 37%, which Democrats say would raise $170 billion in revenue over the next decade.

A summary of the proposals leaked Sunday, and was first reported by The Washington Post.

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Democrats’ $3.5 Trillion Spending Package in Jeopardy, with Pelosi Appearing Short on Votes

Ohio Star Staff
Nancy Pelosi

Washington Democrats’ efforts to pass their signature, $3.5 trillion spending package is in jeopardy of falling apart, as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, leader of the Democrat-controlled chamber, does not appear to have the votes this week to advance the measure awaiting in the Senate.

The votes are set to be cast Monday and Tuesday, with House members returning for two days during their August recess to try to move forward the pending package.

Pelosi can afford to lose only three votes in the narrowly divided chamber. However, nine moderate Democrats have vowed to oppose the two voting measures until the House passes a roughly $1 trillion, bipartisan infrastructure spend package passed in the Senate before the recess.

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Analysis: Republican Officials Leave Their Voters Behind over Not Supporting Monthly Child Tax Credits

Ohio Star Staff

As tens of millions of American families across the country began to see the second round of monthly cash payments appear in their bank accounts Friday, Republicans in Congress remained oddly quiet.

The checks were the result of an expansion of the Child Tax Credit (CTC), which was part of the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package President Joe Biden signed into law in March. While every Republican in Congress voted against the bill, the credit itself is overwhelmingly popular among registered Republicans and Americans overall, creating a rift between reliable conservative voters and the GOP lawmakers who represent them.

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Commentary: Inflation Hits 5.3 Percent in July as $1.2 Trillion Infrastructure Bill Easily Passes with $3.5 Trillion Stimulus Expected in September

Ohio Star Staff

The unadjusted consumer price index as measured by the Bureau of Labor Statistics was 5.28 percent for the month of July, slightly lower than June at 5.32 percent, but still measuring the highest inflation on record since July 2008, when it hit nearly 5.5 percent.

The latest numbers come as Congress has easily passed another gargantuan $1.2 trillion infrastructure spending plan that included $550 billion of new spending. Interest rates have already reacted as 10-year treasuries came off a near-term low of 1.17 percent on Aug. 2 to 1.36 percent as of Aug. 12, slightly increasing inflation expectations.

The $1.2 trillion spendathon was just the latest in a long line of spending that has added $5.25 trillion to the national debt since Jan. 2020 in response to the Covid pandemic all the way to the current $28.5 trillion: the $2.2 trillion CARES Act and the $900 billion phase four under former President Donald Trump, and then the $1.9 trillion stimulus under President Joe Biden. It’s been a bipartisan affair.

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Senate Democrats Publicly Release $3.5 Trillion Filibuster-Proof Budget Reconciliation Resolution

Ohio Star Staff

Senate Democrats have publicly released their $3.5 trillion, filibuster-proof budget reconciliation resolution.

The draft of the legislation released on Monday includes new spending programs that the White House has labeled “human infrastructure,” such as universal pre-K, childcare support and tuition free community college.

The spending total is estimated over a 10-year period. Using budget reconciliation allows the Democrats to pass the measure without votes from Republicans in the 50-50 Senate. Democrats used the same process in March to pass President Biden’s $1.9 trillion pandemic stimulus package called the American Rescue Plan Act.

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The Congressional Budget Office Says the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill Will Increase Deficits by $256 Billion over 10 Years

Admin

The Congressional Budget Office estimated Thursday that the bipartisan Senate infrastructure bill will add $256 billion to the deficit over the next decade, undercutting its backers’ claims the spending had been offset.

In FY2020, the deficit hit a record $3.1 trillion. So far in FY2021, the deficit is $2.2 trillion. The national debt is climbing to $29 trillion for the first time in U.S. history.

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Senate Democrats Attempt to Add Funding for Dreamers, Border Security to Budget Bill

Ohio Star Staff

Senate Democrats are attempting to add funding for “Dreamers” and border security to their budget bill, Axios reported Friday.

The Democrats are looking at adding $10 billion to their $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation package towards border security infrastructure at legal points of entry, according to Axios. The Democrats previously planned to allocate around $120 billion for citizenship for undocumented essential workers, immigrants with Temporary Protected Status and Dreamers.

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Republicans Release Plan to Address Growing Inflation Under Biden Administration

The Center Square
High gas prices

Congressional Republicans grabbed headlines this week after releasing an aggressive budget they say would cut taxes and spending, but key measures in the plan also would address one of the country’s most serious economic problems.

The House’s Republican Study Committee released a budget that lays out several measures to deal with inflation, a growing concern among economists after the latest federal data showed a spike in consumer prices. Notably, the index for used cars and trucks rose 10%, the largest one-month increase since BLS began recording the data in 1953. Food and energy costs rose 0.9% in the month of April, prescription drugs rose 0.5%, and gasoline rose 1.4% during the same month. The energy cost index rose 25% in the previous 12 months.

Republicans on the committee say their plan would address concerns over inflation by balancing the budget within five years, thereby eliminating the need to monetize debt, a process where the federal government prints money to make payments on what it owes. The national debt has soared to more than $28 trillion and is expected to continue climbing under President Joe Biden’s new spending plans.

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Commentary: Price Stability, not Inflation, Will Get the U.S. Economy Back to Full Employment Sooner Rather than Later

Ohio Star Staff

2020 and 2021 are two sides of the same coin: Price instability brought about by the dollar being either relatively too strong or too weak, which can lead to or exacerbate economic slowdowns, creating higher unemployment and worse if the conditions persist for too long.

In 2020, at the height of the Covid pandemic, the problems included the global economy being shut down plus local lockdowns resulting in a massive recession and a flight to safety into U.S. treasuries as interest rates collapsed, making the dollar too strong. With the onset of deflation, consumer prices plummeted in March and April 2020, with oil even dropping briefly below zero dollars for the first time in history, and a concurrent rise of unemployment as 25 million Americans lost their jobs.

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DeWine Signs $8.3B, Two-Year Ohio Transportation Budget

The Center Square
Highway with cars

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine praised the $8.3 billion state transportation budget he signed into law despite it missing the increased vehicle fees and massive cuts for public transportation he proposed.

The two-year budget, House Bill 74, provides money for road and bridge construction and maintenance, as well as other transportation priorities established by the committees in the House and Senate, along with DeWine.

“The budget ensures that we can continue to maintain and invest in Ohio’s roadways,” DeWine said Wednesday. “Ohio’s transportation system continues to be a critical part of our economy, moving materials and people safely across our state. This budget advances our commitment to invest in state and locally-maintained roadways.”

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Ohio Legislature Passes Transportation Budget with Additional Allocations

The Center Square

The Ohio Senate approved more than $8 billion it hopes will spur both economic development and job growth while tackling the state’s transportation needs over the next two years.

The state’s proposed transportation budget passed the Senate unanimously Thursday with some adjustments made by the Senate, including additional money for public transportation, local road projects and emergency road repair. It also requires the Ohio Department of Transportation to reopen currently decommissioned weigh stations to serve as overnight parking areas for commercial truckers.

“This transportation budget makes critical investments in Ohio’s communities and local infrastructure,” said Senate President Matt Huffman, R-Lima. “I am confident House Bill 74 will improve roads and infrastructure that Ohioans use every day and will enhance Ohio’s economy and promote job growth.”

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Ohio Governor Orders Millions More in Cuts to State Agencies

Ohio Star Staff

Saying immediate actions are necessary to keep the state’s budget balanced, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine ordered hundreds of millions of dollars in cuts to state agencies.

“In the springtime, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the global economy, and Ohio’s revenue, was dire. With this, reductions were made to the state biennial budget,” DeWine said. “With this executive order, we are finalizing current year budget reductions at $390 million across all agencies, which is less than the cuts implemented last year.”

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New House Rules Carve-Out for ‘Climate Change’ Bills Exempted from Requiring Projected Price Tag

Admin

House Democrats blocked a Republican attempt on Monday to require any proposed climate change legislation to also include its projected cost.

Under the Pay As You Go (PAYGO) rule, any additional government spending proposed must be accompanied by tax increases or separate cuts. After a push from several lawmakers in the Democratic Party’s progressive wing, however, the rules package for the 117th Congress states PAYGO will not apply to legislation relating to the necessary economic recovery or U.S. efforts to combat climate change.

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Ohio Ends 2020 Fiscal Year with General Tax Revenue Down $1.1 Billion

Ohio Star Staff

Ohio concluded the 2020 fiscal year with General Revenue Fund tax revenues of $1.1 billion, or 4.6 percent, below estimates, a clear indication of the impact the COVID-19 restrictions have had on the state.

Tax revenues in June were $50.5 million, or 2.2 percent, below estimate. However, state officials noted that revenues were better than a month earlier when they were 13 percent below expectations.

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Armstrong Williams Commentary: It’s Time to Talk About Recession

Ohio Star Staff

Is America in a recession? It’s an unpopular question to ask, but it has now been over 3 months since COVID-19 restrictions were initiated and it is time for us to get realistic about where we are economically so that we can take the proper steps to minimize further damage to our economy. At this point, the unfortunate reality is that regardless of what we do, it is likely that it will take at least several years to see a partial recovery of economic loss and the time that it will take for a complete recovery remains unknown at this point. 

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State Board of Education Gets Budget Update from Superintendent with No Mention of Planned Parenthood Being a ‘Community Partner’

Beth Lear

Upon their return from break, State Board of Education Members received a report from Superintendent Paolo DeMaria about the changes made in Ohio’s budget. DeMaria said he was going to, “Put a ribbon around it and also dig into a couple of key areas.”

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Analysis: State Spending in Ohio Rises 6 Times Faster than Population Growth Over Past 30 Years

Ohio Star Staff

Among the U.S. states, Ohio is the sixth-most populated with more than 11.6 million people, many of them located in major population centers like Cleveland, Cincinnati and Columbus. But the rate of population growth in the Buckeye State has been largely stagnant for decades, lagging far behind that seen by the nation as a whole.

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Planned Parenthood Targets Crisis Pregnancy Centers After They Receive $7 Million Boost in Ohio Budget

Anthony Gockowski

  Crisis pregnancy centers in Ohio are set to receive $7.5 million in funding over the next two fiscal years under Ohio’s new state budget, and Planned Parenthood isn’t pleased. During Wednesday’s House floor debate on the budget, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio sent out a number of tweets attacking…

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While the Budget Remains Unfinished, DeWine and Some Legislators Go Fishing

Beth Lear

  Gov. Mike DeWine and some legislators had fun celebrating the 40th Fish Ohio Day on Lake Erie last week. It was a grand celebration of fishing just before the Independence Day holiday, but there was business left unfinished in Columbus. Legislators walked out of the Statehouse on Sunday evening,…

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Governor Mike DeWine Signs Interim Spending Plan, Gives Ohio Lawmakers 17 Days to Agree on a Budget

Ohio Star Staff

by Todd DeFeo   Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed an interim operating budget that funds the state government for 17 days, giving lawmakers additional time to debate a two-year spending plan. DeWine signed both Senate Bill 171, the interim state budget, and Senate Bill 172, a one-month funding extension for…

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Ohio’s Public Defender Recruitment Program Could Cost $3 Million Over Two Years

Ohio Star Staff

by Todd DeFeo   The House Finance Committee is expected to allocate $3 million over the next two years to fund a program aimed at attracting more public defenders throughout Ohio. With little discussion, the state Criminal Justice Committee passed House Bill 5 to create the Public Defender State Loan…

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Ohio’s Future Foundation Pushes Pro-Business Policies to Help All Residents Prosper

Beth Lear

  YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Former Congressman Jim Renacci and Ohio’s Future Foundation (OHFF) were hosted by the Mahoning County Republican Party Tuesday evening.  The GOP group held a social for OHFF in their meeting room in Youngstown. Rick Barron, the Mahoning County Leader, announced that, ‘Tom (Weyand – OHFF’s Outreach…

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Anti-Smoking Groups Actually Testified Against DeWine’s Proposal to Raise Minimum Age to 21

Anthony Gockowski

  Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has called for raising the minimum age to purchase tobacco from 18 to 21, a proposal that’s included in Ohio’s biennial budget bill. But anti-smoking groups in the state have actually testified against the proposal. These groups believe that the proposal would mostly punish youth…

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Ohio House Passes Tax Increases on Small Businesses During Small Business Week

Anthony Gockowski

  The Ohio House passed House Bill 166 Thursday, its version of the state’s biennial budget. While the bill includes substantial income tax reductions, some groups aren’t pleased with the impact it will have on small businesses. Under the bill, Ohio’s Business Investment Income Deduction would be lowered to $100,000.…

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DeWine Proposed Budget Includes New Taxes for Ohio’s Tattoo Artists and Body Piercers

Andrew Shirley

Governor Mike DeWine’s proposed budget for Ohio includes a provision that will raise taxes and regulations on all tattoo artists and body piercers throughout the state. The new provision would require that all current and future tattoo artists and body piercers register with the state for as long as they…

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Ohio Future Foundation’s Chairman Jim Renacci Hosts Facebook Live Budget Forum with State Rep. Powell and Buckeye State Fellow Greg Lawson

Andrew Shirley

The Ohio Future Foundation hosted a wide-ranging Facebook live interview that reviewed the March 15 budget biennial 2020-2021 proposed by  Governor DeWine. Ohio Future Foundation Chairman Jim Renacci was joined by Republican State Representative Jena Powell of Ohio’s 80th district and Senior Fellow Greg Lawson of the Buckeye Institute, a…

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Lawmakers Eye a Huge Backdoor Spending Increase

Ohio Star Staff
US Capitol

by David Ditch   Members of Congress are promoting the concept of changing three programs from the discretionary category (requiring annual appropriations) into mandatory (auto-pilot) spending. Such changes would become a huge backdoor spending increase. Spending limits have come under relentless attack from both parties. In 2013, 2015, and 2018,…

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Smoking Age Will Jump to 21 Under DeWine Budget

Andrew Shirley

In a move to improve health quality in the state, Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine has included a provision in his proposed 2020-2021 Executive Budget that would increase the age for purchasing cigarettes from 18 to 21. The intent is to further discourage the use of cigarettes overall throughout the…

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Ohio Senate Breaks Even Further from Governor DeWine, Lowering Gas Tax to Six Cents

Andrew Shirley

The Republican-held Ohio Senate joined Republicans in the House of Representatives in opposing Gov. Mike DeWine on his proposed gas-tax hike. House Bill 62 (HB 62), the 2020-21 Ohio transportation budget, first proposed by DeWine on Feb. 12, originally called for an 18 cent increase to the current gas tax. This was…

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Ohio Governor Mike DeWine Cites Bible in Budget Proposal That Increases Spending by Seven Percent

Anthony Gockowski

Gov. Mike DeWine (R-OH) released his first two-year budget proposal Friday morning in what he is describing as a $69 billion investment in “Ohio’s future.” “As I shared in my State of the State address, the Bible tells us that there is a time and a place for everything. Now…

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DeWine Budget Calls for Raising Minimum Age to Buy Cigarettes to 21

Anthony Gockowski

Gov. Mike DeWine’s (R-OH) first budget proposal calls for raising the minimum age to purchase cigarettes and other tobacco products from 18 to 21. “The first proposed change is a health policy initiative that would raise the legal age to purchase cigarettes from 18 years old to 21,” the 676-page…

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Governor DeWine Blasts Republican Controlled House for Lowering Gas Tax Proposal

Andrew Shirley

Governor Mike DeWine aggressively condemned his fellow Republicans Monday for not supporting his gas tax increase in a candid interview with the Cleveland Plain Dealer Editorial Board. During the interview, he accused them of outright endangering the safety of Ohioans statewide by not supporting his plan. DeWine, in one of…

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DeWine Praised by Democrats for Giving ‘Democratic State-of-the-State’

Anthony Gockowski

Gov. Mike DeWine (R-OH) recently delivered his first State of the State address, and Democrats in attendance loved what they heard. Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley attended the occasion and was surprised at what she was hearing from the new Republican governor. “When a Republican governor gives a Democratic state-of-the-state speech,…

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