House, Senate leaders reach deal on 2005 spending

By The Washington Post and The Associated Press

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WASHINGTON — House and Senate negotiators, working under the tightest budgetary restraints since the late 1990s, reached agreement late yesterday on a $388 billion spending package that provides money for 13 government departments in 2005 but little or no growth in dozens of domestic programs.

Leaders were hoping the House and Senate would approve the bill today and edge Congress toward the end of its postelection session.

Lawmakers cleared the final hurdle shortly before midnight by agreeing to drop language opposed by the White House limiting President Bush's plan to let private firms compete for some civil servants' jobs, congressional aides said.

Not everybody was happy. Nine female senators — including one Republican, Olympia Snowe of Maine, and Democrats Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell of Washington state — protested a House-passed provision making it easier for hospitals and other health-care providers to refuse to provide abortions, pay for them or offer abortion counseling.

The huge "omnibus" bill, the product of weeks of bargaining and dealmaking behind closed doors, reflects the squeeze on domestic agencies caused by the soaring budget deficit and the costs of the Iraq war and the global counterterrorism effort.

To meet a White House demand that domestic spending grow by less than 1 percent, legislators agreed to trim almost all nondefense programs by 0.83 percent across the board — a move that wiped out much of the $1 billion increase for education aid that negotiators had agreed to in the final stages.

NASA was the beneficiary of extra money in final talks, and negotiators rejected a White House request that they drop a 3.5 percent pay increase for civilian government workers.

Cuts were ordered in congressional favorites such as the National Science Foundation and the $3 billion-a-year Environmental Protection Agency program that pays for sewer and water projects in cities, rural towns and Indian reservations.

Money was reduced for the Housing and Urban Development and State departments, the Federal Aviation Administration and the Bureau of Land Management, sources said. The Labor and Interior departments received nominal increases.

As White House budget officials warned congressional leaders that they would recommend a veto of the spending package if the amount climbed higher, they also pleaded with legislators to provide more money for top White House priorities. These included Bush's Millennium Challenge foreign-aid initiative, manned and robotic missions in space, research on hydrogen-fueled vehicles, and the Marriages and Healthy Families program, which supports teenage sexual abstinence and "responsible fatherhood."
 
Domestic spending controlled by Congress in annual spending bills began growing sharply in the final two years of the Clinton administration when budget surpluses replaced years of deficits. But the Bush administration began applying the brakes after the Sept. 11 attacks.

Spending for domestic programs and departments last year increased by 2.7 percent, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a liberal-advocacy group.

Under the abortion provision, sponsored by Rep. Dave Weldon, R-Fla., state governments could lose federal money if they were found to discriminate against any "health-care entity" that opts not to provide abortion services or referrals. Supporters of the change say it would protect Catholic hospitals and health insurers from "harassment" by state officials. In a letter yesterday, the nine senators said it would expose abortion providers to more intimidation by anti-abortion groups.

Details on Murray and Cantwell were provided by Seattle Times staff reporter

Sara Jean Green.