Finally: Congress Passes 2022 Government Funding Legislation. This week, Congress passed a $1.5 trillion omnibus funding bill (H.R. 2471), setting the table to fully fund the federal government for the remainder of fiscal year (FY) 2022. The appropriations package marks the first time that President Joe Biden and the Democratic-controlled legislative branch will put their imprimatur on federal government funding. Throughout all of 2021 and the first few months of 2022, the federal government has been operating on funding limits established at the end of 2020 and signed into law by former president Donald Trump.
The bill would provide the U.S. Department of Labor with $13.2 billion in funding (a $653 million boost over the FY 2021 enacted level) with the Wage and Hour Division receiving $251 million ($5 million above the FY 2021 enacted level) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) getting $612 million ($20 million above the FY 2021 enacted level). The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission received $420 million ($15.5 million above the FY 2021 enacted level). Though modest, these increases would allow the administration to hire more attorneys, investigators, and other professionals to advance both its enforcement and regulatory agendas. Funding for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) would remain flat at a little more than $274 million, relatively unchanged since 2014. The bill also maintains longstanding language that would prohibit the...
The internet is full of people promising effortless tax refunds. For many, the business model is simple: invent expenses, file claims at volume, and take a cut. These “refund factories” exploit HM...