Is the new Trump OMB rule going to be or not to be. Well, it looks like maybe not to be—at least until December 11. That’s based on the text released on Sunday of the Senate version of a Continuing Resolution to prevent yet another government shutdown. It includes a provision that would prevent the White House Office of Management and Budget from implementing its “Regulation for Federal Financial Assistance” on October 1 as originally planned—a new OMB rule that would give U.S. President Donald Trump much more power over all of federal funding, as I’ve described before in Forbes..
The Continuing Resolution Will Pause But Not Kill The New OMB Rule
The Continuing Resolution would keep all federal agencies funded at their current levels with a few exceptions through December 11, which ironically happens to be National Stretching Day. Continuing Resolutions keep the government running when Congress can’t seem to agree on a more permanent budget, which seems to be happening a lot these days. There have already been six shutdowns under Trump, trailing only Ronald Reagan, who had eight, for most ever for a U.S. President. Senate Appropriations Vice-Chair Patty Murray (D-Washington) along with a number of Senate Democrats, Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) wanted the provision delaying implementation of the new OMB rule thrown into the Continuing Resolution.
Of course, the Senate could have chosen to make the new OMB rule completely not to be and killed it outright. But apparently such a kill bill option did not have enough support in the Senate. Should the current Senate version of the Continuing Resolution pass completely through Congress, it would effectively kick this OMB can down the road until after the midterm elections. That could still be viewed as somewhat of a kick-in-the-you-know-where for OMB Director Russ Vought and Trump.
The New OMB Rule Would Give Trump Unprecedented Power Over Federal Funding
That’s because this new OMB rule would be a major re-write of 2 CFR Part 200 and give the U.S. President—who is Trump if you haven’t heard—and his political appointees unprecedented control over the $1.1 trillion of federal funding that goes out to Americans each year. That would include the ability to yank with practically any federal contract or grant at any time with little justification aside from that it doesn’t match the President’s policies or interests. And Trump’s actions to date against Harvard and other universities suggests that he won’t shy away from using such a hammer to get what he wants.
That’s sparked backlash from a number of sectors including 57 patient advocacy organizations as I’ve detailed previously for Forbes. It’s also motivated the submission of over 290,000 comments during the rather brief 45-day public comment period that went from May 29 to July 13. Now, unless you’ve had time to read through over 290,00o comments, you may not know for sure what’s been said about the OMB rule besides comments like “It is what it is.” Delaying the implementation of the new OMB rule to at least December 11, though, would give everyone a little more breathing room to really consider what’s going on and what’s truly at stake here.
The Senate And Then The House Will Have To Decide On The New OMB Rule
But keep in mind, the Senate has not yet finalized its version of the Continuing Resolution. And that’s a big but, one cannot lie, because things that are seemingly straightforward in Congress can be straight out not. The Senate will be holding an initial procedural vote on this resolution Monday night.
There is impetus for the Senate to pass the resolution by the end of the week due to the big “V.” No, not ““vegetables,” as in which vegetables should you not eat because of the four continuing Cyclospora outbreaks. But ”V” as in “vacation.” The Senators will be going on a five-week recess, starting next week. So if nothing gets done by then, nothing will get done until September.
If the Senate does end up passing this version of the Continuing Resolution before recess, things will then be on the House, so to speak, in September. That side of Congress will then have to decide what to do about a Continuing Resolution and the new OMB rule.
The government fiscal year ends on September 30. So it’s not like the House of Representatives will have eons to debate, posture and do the things that politicians do. If October 1 comes and there’s no new budget or at least Continuing Resolution in place, the government will have no choice but to shut down once again. I will continue to reach out to contacts in federal government and provide updates accordingly based on what I hear.
Will The OMB Rule Be A Major Midterm Election Issue?
Of course, many Congress members right now are like college students in that they are worried about parties and midterms. The midterm elections are in early November and will decide which political parties have control of the Senate and the House. So, if you’ve got strong opinions either way about the new OMB rule, this is the time to be vocal—to political representatives especially. If you choose instead not to be—not to be vocal about the OMB—then you’ll have to deal with whatever reverberating consequences result, potentially with no voice by then.
