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Congress returned Monday from a two-week recess facing what is expected to be months of wrangling between Republicans and Democrats over competing budget plans. The latest budget report showed that government revenues over the last six months totaled $1.42 trillion, up 7.3 percent from a year ago. Government spending over the same period totaled $1.86 trillion, an increase of 7.1 percent over the previous year. Spending on Medicare rose 8 percent, and spending on Medicaid shot up 23 percent. (Crutsinger, 4/13)

The U.S. budget deficit widened slightly during the first half of the 2015 fiscal year, ending a streak of sustained declines. ... Deficits are still near their lowest levels in six years. ... Congress and the White House agreed to a series of spending curbs—known as the sequester—four years ago that sharply reined in government spending. A growing economy also has boosted tax receipts. More recently, government spending has climbed amid an uptick in outlays on entitlement programs such as Medicare and Social Security. The bite of the sequester has also eased after lawmakers agreed two years ago to slightly higher government funding levels. (Timiraos, 4/13)

As top Republicans continue negotiating a final spending blueprint, House GOP leaders aren’t backing away from their plans to use a fast-track budget procedure to do more than just move an Obamacare repeal. The expedited procedure, called reconciliation, allows the Senate to pass legislation by simple majority instead of the typical 60-vote threshold, provided the two chambers can agree on a budget resolution. ... House Republicans want to use reconciliation to speed several priorities, from an Obamacare repeal to a possible tax overhaul to entitlement changes. The Senate prefers to use reconciliation just to take on Obamacare. (Bade and Sherman, 4/13)