|
 |
 |
|
This week: Supercommittee gets down to business
The supercommittee will begin its work in earnest this week as it hunts for a minimum of $1.5 trillion in deficit cuts.
The joint committee on deficit reduction is slated Tuesday to hear testimony from Douglas Elmendorf, director of the Congressional Budget Office. That hearing comes after a largely procedural session on Thursday where the dozen lawmakers on the panel made brief statements and signed off on rules for the panel.
President Obama upped the pressure on the group Thursday night with his proposed jobs bill. The package of targeted spending and tax cuts is intended to boost the economy, but the president is asking the supercommittee to track down savings that will cover its cost, estimated at close to $450 billion.
Both parties plan to kick the tires on Obama’s plan in the days ahead. The House Oversight Committee will hold a subcommittee hearing Tuesday to discuss it, and House Democrats are pressuring GOP committee chairmen to hold hearings on the plan and move it through the chamber in legislation.
With tax reform expected to be part of the supercommittee discussions, the Senate Finance Committee is moving its work on the issue into overdrive this week, with hearings on the ledger for three consecutive days.
Tuesday’s subcommittee hearing, which will examine tax reform’s role in the deficit discussion, has perhaps the most star wattage, with Alan Greenspan, the former Fed chairman, and other economic heavyweights scheduled to appear. Senate Finance will also discuss taxes on high earners and the impact of taxes on retirement security as it weighs potential recommendations to the supercommittee.
The House Budget Committee will dip a toe into the tax-reform debate Wednesday with its own hearing. Rep. Paul Ryan’s (R-Wis.) panel will be discussing ways to overhaul the tax code in a way that gives the economy a kick start.
House appropriators will be busy next week as they move spending bills for the Labor and State departments and begin working on another continuing resolution to keep the government up and running.
On Thursday, the House Financial Services Committee will be looking to give the Securities and Exchange Commission a makeover. The financial markets watchdog has had its hands full implementing the Dodd-Frank financial reform law, but still has not shaken criticism for failing to spot the warnings signs of the financial crisis.
The Senate Banking Committee will talk housing on Thursday. As policymakers continue to search for a way to boost a housing market that has been an anchor on the economic recovery, lawmakers will be discussing whether the government should be in the business of guaranteeing mortgages.
Most Viewed RSS Feed »
