The White House is debating whether to send its rescission request this week or hold off for a couple of weeks, allowing Congress to make further progress on reconciliation, sources familiar with the matter told NOTUS on Tuesday.
The administration was expected to send Congress its rescission request on Monday, but now the process has been slowed down and could be delayed for weeks. House Appropriations Committee Chair Tom Cole and two sources said the White House is debating whether to send the package while Congress is in the middle of dealing with reconciliation.
“I actually think there’s some debate in the White House about that,” Cole said. “Do you want to do it now? Does it get in the way of reconciliation? I don’t know that they’ve resolved that.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The rescission request would functionally codify the Trump administration’s spending cuts made through DOGE over the last several months.
Congress would have 45 days to approve a rescission package canceling appropriated spending before funds would be released to their original destination. But the Office of Management and Budget is delayed in putting it together, one of the sources familiar with the matter told NOTUS. If the White House did send its rescission package this week, Congress would have to work on passing both a rescission package and a reconciliation bill at the same time, creating a headache for leadership.
NOTUS reported earlier this month that House GOP leadership was discussing whether the proposed time frame for a rescission request makes sense or if they should push the White House to hold off and wait, knowing how difficult reconciliation will be to pass on its own.
While nothing is set in stone, members and Congressional staff are starting to think the White House intends to hold off on the package for a little longer.
“I don’t know a date at all, but I’m listening and thinking it might be a few more weeks,” Rep. Aaron Bean said.
Cole also told reporters he hadn’t seen anything yet, and he was assured by the White House that they would get a chance to review it before they publicly send it out.
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Reese Gorman is a reporter at NOTUS.