What's In The Proposed 2015 Federal Budget?

As of December 10, 2014 The New Times Reports Spending Bill Hits Snags, but Congress Thinks It Can Avoid Shutdown. The long and short of this is rather then getting a full year budget passed, once again we might end up with some sort of short term agreement. So what else is new?

So What's In The Proposed $1.01 Trillion Budget?
You can check it out for yourself Here @ House.gov or take a look at the entire 1,603 page HR83 bill itself (pdf) (current as 12/10/2014).

If you don't have the time to watch paint dry I'll go over a few items I found of interest.CAMPAIGN FINANCE
Currently wealthy donors are only allowed to contribute a maxim of $32,400 to either major party. Changes would allow them to toss in 10x's more on top of this to various arms of a political party. So if anyone thought campaign finance reform meant reigning them in... it just went the opposite way. Surprised?

PELL GRANT PROGRAM
A $303 million cut. Instead part of the $4.4 billion surplus generated would be used to pay collection companies used by the Department of Education. This is a bit worrisome because the CBO calculates the Pell program might go into the red as early as sometime in 2017.

GUANTANAMO BAY
HR83 would forbid sending current detainees to the United States although they still could be transferred elsewhere overseas

AFFORDABLE CARE ACT
The bill would not defund it, but neither provide any additional new money for it either. This includes the agencies for Medicare/Medicaid Services and the IRS who oversees it's implementation is carried out. In addition reduces by $10 million funding for the 'Independent Payment Advisory Board' of it.

INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE
Would have it's budget reduced by $345.6 million.

PENSIONS
Relax the obligatory requirements now in place. For 40 years even plans running into trouble weren't allowed to reduce payments to people already retired and collecting.

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
Reduce funding by another $60 million less then it received last year. This would leave the agency with $2.2 billion less funding then the $10+ billion it had 4 years ago.

WIC (Women, Infants & Children) PROGRAM
$93 million les then last year. The new WIC budget would be $6.6 billion.

TRUCK DRIVER REGULATIONS
Regulations issued by the federal Department of Transportation required drivers be off the road two nights between work weeks. A work week was limited to 70 hours. HR83 eliminates that requirement. Assumably restoring the previous 82 hour week limit.
I only listed nine of the changes I found to be greater interests to me. There are plenty more. Some I haven't mentioned increase funding for the CDC, fighting EBOLA, embassy security, the FDA, counter terrorism and Israel to name a few.

There are also other parts which change policies and override previous regulations which I haven't mentioned. The 800lb guerrilla in the room is if HR83 ends up only as a short term measure. People should expect many more changes and continued partisan bickering in the days ahead.

I mean really. Does anyone actually believe for one minute the 114th session of Congress will be any different from the 113th,112th,111th and those before it?