Congressional leadership released a 1,500-page spending bill to keep the government open through March 14. The legislation was supposed to be a simple continuation of funding while lawmakers negotiate a package that will cover all of 2025.
The drawn-out negotiation process led to everyone wanting a piece of the pie. The bill now includes dozens of add-ons, many of which have nothing to do with government funding.
“They got a bunch of garbage they want to pass,” Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., told reporters.
The bill contains $100 billion in disaster relief for hurricane recovery in the Southeast and $30 billion in aid for farmers. Those items are just a drop in the bucket of the massive bill.
As Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, pointed out, in the less than 45 days since the election, lawmakers added $330 billion in deficit spending.
“We’re profoundly unserious on spending,” Roy said.
A raise for members of Congress
Lawmakers are giving themselves a raise for the first time since 2009 by restarting cost of living adjustments. Members currently make $174,000 a year.
According to Investopedia, “a family of four with both adults working needs about $135,000 in income before taxes to make ends meet in Washington, D.C.”
Here’s the catch: Members of Congress have to maintain two households, one in D.C., the other in their home state. That’s not easy considering D.C. is the ninth most expensive city in the country, behind Los Angeles and ahead of Boston.
“If you’ve never given members of Congress a raise, for 14 years they haven’t had a raise, then you can only attract people like me who made enough money in a prior line of work who can afford to come here,” Rep. Sean Casten, D-Ill., said on C-SPAN.
New rules for ticket sales
The continuing resolution includes new rules for ticket issuers like Ticketmaster and StubHub. The bill requires them to “clearly and conspicuously” display the total price of the ticket and an itemized list of the base price and fees. There’s a similar provision for hotel room prices.
RFK Stadium revitalization
There’s also a measure to transfer the 174-acre RFK stadium campus to the District of Columbia. The federal government currently controls the unused land.
The city wants to knock down the rusting stadium and build a new one. The new stadium will be surrounded by apartments, office buildings, shops and restaurants.
The city hopes to bring the Washington Commanders back to D.C.
Other policy provisions include restrictions on U.S. capital investment in China.
There are also five year extensions for special trade programs with Haiti and Africa. Those include duty-free access for apparel and textile products.
