Some highlights of the almost 1600-page fiscal year 2014 Omnibus Appropriations Bill, a bipartisan effort which will provide discretionary funding for the entire federal government for the fiscal year. Republican House Appropriations Chair Rogers and Democrat Senator Mikulski hammered out the first appropriations bill in years. Up to now the Congress has just been operating on continuing resolutions. It indicates to me that even those who rode the short bus to Capitol Hill are starting to get the fiscal responsibility message. All 12 regular appropriations bills for 2014 are included in this single bill which allows some targeting and prioritization. The full bill and accompanying report are available for viewing at http://www.rules,house.gov/. The amount appropriated abides by the Ryan-Murphy Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 which provides a total of $1,012 trillion got the operation of the federal government. The highlights include these: ● Military Pension "Fix" -- The legislation...(Read Full Post)