House moving toward higher 2017 spending caps

It's now looking less likely that fiscally conservative House lawmakers will win spending cuts in the fiscal 2017 budget deal.

After lawmakers huddled Tuesday, it became clear that the House will not vote on a $1.07 trillion fiscal 2017 budget resolution this week. GOP leaders are holding off because conservative Republicans still want the number slashed to $1.04 billion.

But the appropriations process is moving ahead without a budget resolution and will adhere to the the $1.07 trillion spending cap agreed upon last last year by Congressional Republicans, Democrats and President Obama, for 2017.

On Wednesday the Appropriations subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs will vote on an $81.6 billion measure that increases spending $1.8 billion over fiscal 2016.

Appropriators say sticking to the $1.07 trillion cap for 2017 spending is the only way Congress would be able to move spending legislation, since the lower figure would require domestic cuts that many lawmakers will oppose, and legislation that would fail in the Senate. And the more work that gets done on the spending bills, the harder it will be to pare back the number later.