The Federal Budget's Long Emergency

Got a boondoggle you're not proud of? Stick it in a supplemental appropriations bill.

Veronique de Rugy from the December 2006 issue

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o:p> /o:p> /span> /p> p class="Flargetext c2"> span class="c1"> o:p> /o:p> /span> /p> p class="Flargetext c2"> span class="c1">Supplemental spending, “emergency” spending in particular, has become Washington’s tool of choice for evading annual budget limits and increasing spending across the board. Funding predictable, nonemergency needs through supplementals hides skyrocketing military costs and allows Congress to boost regular appropriations for both defense and nondefense programs, thereby enabling the spending explosion of the last five years. o:p> /o:p> /span>