Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014 (H.R. 3547; 113th Congress)

Space Launch Liability Indemnification Extension Act / Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014

Colloquial name(s)	Omnibus Spending Bill
Introduced in	113th United States Congress
Introduced on	November 20, 2013
Sponsored by	Rep. Lamar Smith (R, TX-21)
Legislative history
Introduced in the House as H.R. 3547 by Rep. Lamar Smith (R, TX-21) on November 20, 2013 Committee consideration by: United States House Committee on Science, Space and Technology Passed the House on December 2, 2013 (Roll Call Vote 612: 376-5) Passed the Senate as the A bill to extend Government liability, subject to appropriation, for certain third-party claims arising from commercial space launches. on December 12, 2013 (unanimous consent)

The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014 (H.R. 3547, nicknamed the Cromnibus) is an omnibus spending bill, a bill that packages several appropriation bills together in one larger bill. The 113th United States Congress failed to pass any of the twelve regular appropriations bills prior to the beginning of Fiscal Year 2014. The Continuing Appropriations Act, 2014 temporarily funded the government from the October 1, 2013 beginning of the 2014 fiscal year to January 15, 2014. A second continuing resolution extended funding until January 18, 2014, allowing time for the House and the Senate to vote on this bill.

The budget and spending process of the United States federal government is a complex one. The United States budget process traditionally begins when the President of the United States submits a budget request to Congress. The Budget and Accounting Act of 1921 requires the President to submit the budget to Congress for each fiscal year, which is the 12-month period beginning on October 1 and ending on September 30 of the next calendar year. The current federal budget law (31 U.S.C. § 1105(a)) requires that the President submit his or her budget request between the first Monday in January and the first Monday in February. However, it is Congress that actually establishes the budget, as the U.S. Constitution (Article I, section 9, clause 7) states that "No money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law; and a regular Statement and Account of Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time." The President does not sign the final budget.

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