Congress, White House reach 1996 budget deal

Seven months into the fiscal year, the White House and Congress finally struck a deal in the waning hours of April 24 on a fiscal 1996 federal budget for the nine Cabinet departments and several dozen agencies that had been operating under a series of continuing resolutions. Both sides apparently got at least some of what they wanted. Congressional Republicans could point to an overall spending level some $23 billion lower than the previous year's—a down payment on balancing the federal budget. President Clinton got funding restored for some of his priority programs, including the Department of Commerce's Advanced Technology Program (ATP). And a number of what he considered antienvironmental riders were dropped from the final omnibus appropriations bill (H.R. 3019), which he was expected to sign as soon as it reached his desk. Details of the agreement—including budget numbers—were not yet available at press time. But it appeared that research funding agencies fared better ...