Chicago – June 04, 2025
The White House has sent its long-awaited spending cuts request to Congress as it seeks to formalize a slew of DOGE slashes to federal funding.
The $9.4 billion package – known as “rescissions” on Capitol Hill – would claw back previously appropriated government funding. The move to cancel the funding through Congress would insulate the administration from legal challenges related to its cuts to federal funding.
As anticipated, the cuts target the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a small chunk of the federal budget that provides some public funding for NPR and PBS, as well as the United States Agency for International Development.
This initial request, however, is far more limited in scope than the more than $1 trillion in spending cuts that DOGE has promised. The lengthy time it took the White House to send over a first round of cuts underscores the uphill battle for even a Republican-led Congress to codify DOGE’s work.
Congress will have 45 days after the White House submits the request to consider it. It can pass both the House and Senate with a simple majority, meaning it could clear the chambers without Democratic support.
House Speaker Mike Johnson vowed in statement Tuesday that “the House will act quickly on this request.”
“This rescissions package reflects many of DOGE’s findings and is one of the many legislative tools Republicans are using to restore fiscal sanity. Congress will continue working closely with the White House to codify these recommendations, and the House will bring the package to the floor as quickly as possible,” Johnson said in part.
