Defense Announces Furlough Delay

Defense Announces Furlough Delay

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The Pentagon says it will delay issuing furlough notices for two weeks while it sorts out how the newly passed spending bill will impact its budget. The CR that Congress approved earlier today gives the DOD more flexibility to managed the sequester cuts that took effect on March 1. The DOD had been planning to furlough most of its 700,000 civilian employees for 22 days through September.   -  See the announcement here

A WEEKEND OF BUDGET VOTES    The Senate is working its way through 50 hours of debate on the first Democratic budget to reach the floor in nearly four years. The debate time will expire at 7 p.m. on Friday night, when the chamber is expected to begin voting on the 2014 budget. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is intent on passing a budget before Easter break – so it could be a long weekend indeed.   -  Read more at The Hill

10 SNEAKY STATE TAXES      Every year, lawmakers from cash-strapped states dream up new sources of revenue, usually by slapping a tax on something people are willing to pay a little more for – or by taxing something they’re not likely to notice. Everything from that sliced breakfast bagel, to that butterfly tattoo you’re considering,  can be subject to a tax.   -   Click here to see 10 crazy state taxes at The Fiscal Times

CONGRESS BUDGETS FOR SATURDAY MAIL     Included in the spending bill Congress passed today is a provision maintaining the financially strapped Postal Service’s Saturday delivery. Never mind that the majority of Americans support ending Saturday deliveries …or  that the Postmaster General has called for the USPS to switch to a five-day schedule, which could save the agency an estimated $2 billion a year.  -  Read more at The Fiscal Times

Brianna Ehley is the former Washington Correspondent for The Fiscal Times. She is currently a reporter on Politico's health care team in Washington, D.C.