The budget process reform bill approved last week by the House Budget Committee does not have sufficient support to win House approval, and Republican leaders' intention to bring the measure to the floor next week is in serious jeopardy, according to well- placed GOP sources.
Although proponents are not willing to publicly declare the proposal dead, all indications are that the measure has become a victim of the formidable opposition of House appropriators, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bud Shuster, R-Pa., and most House Democrats.
Republican leaders "won't bring the bill up next week unless they think it can pass," said a senior GOP Budget Committee aide, adding, "It's probably correct that it can't pass."
Another Republican source said House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., has been unwilling to take on the long-stated opposition to the plan by the Appropriations Committee, where opposition has focused on several features, notably, the proposal for an automatic continuing resolution to prevent a federal shutdown if Congress has not finished action on the annual spending bills before the start of the fiscal year.
On Tuesday, the House Appropriations Committee, which has partial jurisdiction over the bill, marked up and reported out unfavorably the budget process reform measure.
As expected, the committee adopted unanimously, by voice vote, a substitute amendment by Chairman Young to delete the section creating an automatic continuing resolution to provide level funding at the start of a new fiscal year for government agencies covered by spending bills not finalized on time.
Young, ranking member David Obey, D-Wis., and several senior committee members of both parties said the budget process changes in the bill would not only weaken appropriators' authority, but would weaken the House's authority and that of the legislative branch as a whole, in determining how government money is spent.
Separately, Hastert has had problems getting appropriators to move this year's bills within the budget resolution's spending caps.
Leadership sources, hopeful of giving Republicans a legislative victory that they can trumpet to constituents, said they expect House action on the budget process bill next week, although official announcement awaits the Rules Committee's scheduled markup of the bill this afternoon.
"As far as we know, it's still going forward," said Hastert spokesman John Feehery.
Michele Davis, spokeswoman for House Majority Leader Dick Armey, R-Texas, added: "The vast majority of our members support the bill. ... We expect that it will be on the floor. That's the intention."
Budget Committee Chairman John Kasich, R-Ohio, had hoped to compensate for the appropriators' opposition by picking up Democratic support.
But unexpectedly strong White House objections have reportedly led to nearly unanimous opposition from Democrats.
"We have heard of closed-door sessions where Democratic members were really worked over," said the Budget Committee GOP aide.
Kasich, who has had less time for House business because of his presidential candidacy, also has been weakened internally by his continuing feud with Shuster, who defeated a Kasich-led bid last week to limit spending on the Transportation and Infrastructure panel's airport spending bill.