Trump budget will give $54B to Pentagon, cut State Department, EPA, officials say

The Trump administration will release a budget proposal Monday that calls for an increase in spending for defense and a deep cut for the Environmental Protection Agency, according to sources familiar with the proposal.

According to a story from Reuters, two officials familiar with the proposal, but who are not authorized to speak about the specifics of the plan, said the Department of Defense will receive money for building ships and aircraft and bulking up its presence in “key international waterways and chokepoints.”

An official in the Office of Management and Budget said the budget “blueprint” will pour some $54 billion into defense spending. The source said the money will come from cuts in domestic programs, foreign aid and the State Department. The State Department budget could be cut by as much as 20 percent, one source said.

The EPA is also said to be in the president's crosshairs, while White House spokesman Sean Spicer has said that Social Security and Medicare spending will be protected, with no cuts suggested.

According to Myron Ebell, who led the Trump transition team focused on the EPA, said staff at the EPA could be cut by two-thirds.  What will be submitted on Monday or Tuesday is known as a “skinny budget,” or a document that summarizes policy and funding priorities.

The federal budget process begins with a budget request submitted by the president to Congress. Then the House and Senate must pass budget resolutions. The House and Senate Appropriations subcommittees research and mark up appropriation bills. Congress would then vote on the bills and go back to committee to reconcile differences. After the final bills emerge from Congress, the president signs them and the budget becomes law.

Cox Media Group