OVERNIGHT MONEY: Spending bills moving

TUESDAY’S BIG STORY: 

Spending bills getting attention: The House Appropriations Committee will slog its way through another — its fifth of 12 annual bills — fiscal 2014 spending measure on Tuesday while the Senate panel gets off the starting line with two subcommittee markups.

The House takes up its Republican-generated energy and water measure that would cut spending on renewable energy in half next year as part of the plan to deal with scheduled across-the-board spending cuts. 

{mosads}Renewable energy would see a slash to $1 billion, a reduction of $911 million compared with 2013. The House is aiming for the topline spending levels of $967 billion as called for under the 2011 Budget Control Act. 

Because the House is increasing defense spending above the sequester’s level, they are forced to cut non-defense spending.

Two Senate subcommittees will take up the agriculture spending bill and the measure for military construction and veterans affairs. The panel has yet to produce drafts for the measures yet, but it is widely understood they will come in at the higher topline $1.058 trillion spending level. 

The House Committee approved its version of the agriculture measure last week, which provides funds for agricultural and food programs and services, including food safety, rural development and farm services and nutrition programs.

The bill totals $19.5 billion in discretionary funding, which is $1.3 billion below the fiscal 2013 enacted level and about the same level caused by automatic sequestration. The total is $516 million below President Obama’s request for the programs.

In addition, the House easily passed the military construction bill on June 4, which includes $73.3 billion in discretionary funding and is $1.4 billion above the enacted level for fiscal 2013, and about $2.4 billion above the current level caused by automatic sequestration spending cuts, which do not affect veterans spending. This level is nearly $1.4 billion below the president’s request.

Both committees are aiming to get through all 12 of the spending bills before the fiscal year ends Sept. 30. 

WHAT ELSE WE’RE WATCHING 

Obama to Berlin: After another day of meetings with top European leaders at the Group of Eight summit, President Obama departs Northern Ireland on Tuesday on his way to Berlin, where he will reiterate the important economic relationship between the United States and Germany. He will meet with Chancellor Angela Merkel and make a speech at the Brandenburg Gate on Wednesday. 

The visit comes nearly 50 years to the day after former President John F. Kennedy made his powerful “Ich bin ein Berliner” remarks. 

Sky high: On Tuesday, the Senate Finance Committee will explore why U.S. healthcare costs are so high and if there is anything that Congress can do about it. Steven Brill, the author of a widely read Time magazine piece on the subject, will attend, along with other healthcare industry experts.

Reverse that: A Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs subcommittee on Tuesday will chat with industry experts about the long-term sustainability for reverse mortgages. 

We do need some education: The Senate Budget Committee on Tuesday will hear testimony from Education Secretary Arne Duncan as he discusses his department’s fiscal 2014 budget request.

CFPB budget: The House Financial Services Committee will examine on Tuesday the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s budget with the agency’s chief financial officer, Stephen Agostini. In April, Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) said that CFPB Director Richard Cordray would not be welcome to testify before the panel because his recess appointment made him an invalid head of the agency.

Improving efficiency: The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee will chat with former government officials and academics about how to better control federal spending and provide a stabler economic environment. 

Hampering housing?: A House Financial Services subcommittee will chat on Tuesday with lenders, real estate agents and financial industry experts whether the Dodd-Frank financial reform law is holding back home ownership. The National Association of Federal Credit Unions (NAFCU) wrote a letter on Monday to committee members arguing that new mortgage rules set to go into place within the next year will “undoubtedly alter the mortgage market in unintended ways.” The ability-to-pay rule is of particular concern because of its tight debt-to-income ratios that could keep many from buying a home. 

Closer look at welfare: A House Ways and Means subcommittee will hold a hearing on Tuesday to review current programs designed to assist low-income individuals and families, how those programs can stymie them from earning more money and how they fail to address factors that put them in a place to seek assistance. 

ECONOMIC INDICATORS 

Consumer Price Index (CPI): The Labor Department releases its May report measuring the prices of a fixed market basket of goods and services purchased by consumers. CPI is the most widely cited inflation indicator and it is used to calculate cost-of-living adjustments for government programs.    

Housing Starts-Building Permits: The Commerce Department releases its May report on the number of residential units under construction, along with building permits, which allow builders to break ground and are a forward-looking indicator of where the sector is headed.

WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED

— Obama, EU leaders launch trade talks

— Supremes take up racial bias case

— Obama threatens to veto House farm bill

— Leadership shakeup at influential FDIC office

— Corker blocks Afghan war funds over CIA ‘ghost money’ program

— GAO: IRS needs to keep an eye on virtual currencies

— Homebuilder confidence hits highest level in 7 years

— Liberty Mutual lures lobbyist from Citigroup

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