Appropriations bills are about money, but sometimes those measures have policy provisions that spark fierce fights.
The fiscal 2013 appropriations round, now under way, offers several examples.
On May 31, the House voted 218-198 to delete language in the FY13 military-construction/veterans-affairs spending bill that would have barred agencies from adopting union-only project labor agreements (PLAs).
In another bill, one section would block the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from issuing regulatory guidance to clarify the Clean Water Act definition of federally regulated waters. Industry organizations back that language, but environmental groups oppose it.
