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National budgets

A man sits with a bowl asking for money in the central business district of Christchurch, New Zealand, Thursday, May 30, 2019. The liberal-led government on Thursday unveiled the country's first so-called well-being budget, which aims to measure social outcomes like health and the environment alongside traditional metrics such as economic growth. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)
May 30, 2019 - 12:35 am

New Zealand's 1st 'well-being budget' targets mental health

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand's government announced Thursday it will spend billions of dollars more on mental health services and combatting child poverty as part of a new approach to its finances. The liberal-led government unveiled the country's first so-called well-being budget. It...
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May 21, 2019 - 9:58 pm

Research on children's health risks in doubt over EPA funds

WASHINGTON (AP) — Long-running research projects credited with pivotal discoveries about the harm that pesticides, air pollution and other hazards pose to children are in jeopardy or shutting down because the Environmental Protection Agency will not commit to their continued funding, researchers...
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Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin leaves a meeting with top congressional leaders, including Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., on a potential deal to raise the budget caps, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, May 21, 2019. Mnuchin said they will be coming back for more talks later in the afternoon. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
May 21, 2019 - 1:57 pm

Progress seen on debt, spending talks

WASHINGTON (AP) — The top Republican in the House says congressional negotiators are making progress on two must-do items on the legislative agenda: averting automatic budget cuts and meeting a deadline later this year to increase the government's borrowing limit. Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy...
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FILE - In this April 10, 2019 file photo, a sign is shown during a news conference to reintroduce "Medicare for All" legislation, on Capitol Hill in Washington. The “Medicare for All” proposal from leading Democrats running for president appears more lavish than what’s offered in other advanced countries. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, file)
May 21, 2019 - 6:27 am

'Medicare for All's' rich benefits 'leapfrog' other nations

WASHINGTON (AP) — Generous benefits. No copays. No need for private policies. The "Medicare for All" plan advocated by leading 2020 Democrats appears more lavish than what's offered in other advanced countries, compounding the cost but also potentially broadening its popular appeal. While other...
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May 17, 2019 - 1:28 pm

Pelosi to meet Mnuchin in hopes of deals on debt, spending

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other congressional leaders have arranged to meet with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney next week to explore an agreement to increase the government's borrowing cap as well as legislation to stave...
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FILE - In this May 3, 2017, file photo Education Secretary Betsy DeVos speaks during a school choice event in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington. Education advocates say a Trump administration plan to use federal Pell Grant money to fund space exploration would jeopardize aid for future college students and could trigger a budgeting crisis within a few years. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
May 14, 2019 - 6:42 pm

Trump faces backlash over plan to dip into Pell reserves

Education advocates say a Trump administration plan to use federal Pell Grant money to fund space exploration would jeopardize aid for future college students and could trigger a budgeting crisis within just a few years. The plan aims to redirect $1.9 billion from a Pell Grant surplus to jumpstart...
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FILE - In this November 1969 photo provided by NASA, Apollo 12 mission Commander Charles P. "Pete" Conrad stands on the moon's surface. He was the third man to walk on the moon. On Tuesday, May 14, 2019, NASA's chief says the Trump administration's proposed $1.6 billion budget boost is a "good start" for putting astronauts back on the moon. (AP Photo/NASA)
May 14, 2019 - 4:17 pm

NASA: Budget boost 'good start' to put astronauts on moon

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA's chief said Tuesday that the Trump administration's proposed $1.6 billion budget boost is a "good start" for getting astronauts back on the moon within five years. Administrator Jim Bridenstine addressed employees a day after the White House introduced the budget...
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President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, May 13, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
May 13, 2019 - 11:11 pm

Trump targets Pell Grant money for NASA's budget boost

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration wants to shift money for Pell Grants for college education to fund new spending, including a $1.6 billion bump for NASA to return American astronauts to the moon by 2024. Under a budget amendment sent to Congress Monday evening, the administration would...
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FILE - In this Jan. 28, 2019, file photo, acting Defense Secretary Pat Shanahan speaks with the media as he waits for the arrival of NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the Pentagon in Washington. President Donald Trump on May 9, said he will nominate Shanahan to be his second secretary of defense. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
May 10, 2019 - 5:08 pm

Pentagon shifting $1.5 billion to border wall construction

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon is shifting $1.5 billion in funds originally targeted for support of the Afghan security forces and other projects to help pay for construction of nearly 80 miles (130 kilometers) of wall at the U.S.-Mexican border, officials said Friday. Congress was notified of the...
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FILE - This April 18, 2019, file photo shows the dome of the U.S. Capitol in Washington. On Friday, April 10, the Treasury Department releases federal budget data for April. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
May 10, 2019 - 2:42 pm

US government records $160.3 billion April surplus

WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal government recorded a $160.3 billion surplus in April as revenues for the month jumped to an all-time high. But even with a flood of tax receipts, the deficit so far this year is running 37.7% higher than a year ago. The Treasury Department reported Friday that the...
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