Sen. Bob Corker has signed off on the conference report for the fiscal 2016 budget resolution, clearing an obstacle for House and Senate Republicans to move forward.  

The Tennessee Republican had been particularly concerned about a move by the conference negotiators to weaken his provision that would have phased out the use of certain changes in mandatory programs to raise discretionary spending (the so-called CHIMPs ).  

“There is no question this budget is far from perfect, but it is some progress since it has been a long time since the Congress has completed this basic part of governing,” Corker said in a statement. “I have had conversations on both sides of the Capitol laying out what I believe we need to do to prepare for next year’s budget process so that we can make much greater progress toward addressing the tremendous fiscal challenges our country faces.”  

Once the conference report is formally filed, the House and Senate are expected to quickly move forward with floor consideration of the final blueprint. That will guide the appropriators on spending bills and also potentially pave a path for the GOP to use budget reconciliation to get legislation rolling back the Affordable Care Act through Congress.  

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