US spending cuts largely barked about this year might bite in 2014.
A second round of across-the-board spending cuts are about to hit the United States this fiscal year that is more painful than the last-year�™s.
The first round of automatic cuts took effect last year and expired Sept. 30, damaging the national economy to some extent. Last year, federal agencies could find ways to reduce risk of furloughing their employees in the 2013 budget year, the Associated Press reported.
The Pentagon used more than $5 billion in unspent money from previous years to cushion the impact of its $39 billion budget cut, the report said, adding that the Justice Department also found more than $500 million in similar money that made it possible for agencies like the FBI to avoid furloughs altogether.
But many experts believe the budget talks in Congress will not be fruitful because of the continuation of the partisan bickering that has gripped Washington for years. The talks come as both parties got reduced status in the eye of Americans when they were busy fighting over a temporary spending bill that partially shut down the government for 16 days.
If a budget deal is not reached, the spending “caps” on agency operating budgets will shrink by another $20 billion. All the agencies that withstood the dire effects of the cuts in 2013, are preparing for a second round of cuts that will be much more painful.
This time, the Justice Department will feel the effects of the cuts too.
FBI is already in a hiring freeze and has suspended training of new agents. The new FBI Director James Comey said the automatic spending cuts will force him to lay off 3,000 positions. The FBI’s 36,000 employees are facing unpaid furloughs of two weeks.
AN/ARA
Source: Press TV