White House has asked all Cabinet agencies for wall funding

[politicaljunkie41910]

28. Glad you said that or I would have. Having worked for the federal government, you can't just move

money around willy nilly. When Congress appropriates money, it must be used for the purpose (appropriation) as intended. It is also sometimes referred to as the "color of money". To do otherwise is called "misappropriation" of funds, which is a crime. Congress appropriates the funding at the beginning of the fiscal year, for projects/purposes usually decided upon prior to the beginning of the fiscal year, and those funds must be used for the purpose intended. Multiyear programs (i.e. a fleet of new aircraft for the military) or construction projects which will take more than a year to complete, are usually purchased over a period of time with annual incremental funding provided on a fiscal year basis.

Funds that do not get spent in the fiscal year intended and for the purpose intended expire or "Cancel" at the end of that fiscal year and those funds are referred to as Cancelling Funds. Funds due to cancel can only be used for the type of funding intended. Each year at the beginning of the fiscal year, we would identify those funds due to 'cancel' at the end of the current fiscal year which will not be needed to complete current projects. The purpose of this is to identify and deobligate those funds and return them so that Congress can re-appropriate those funds which are not needed for the project originally intended, and to return them to Congress where they might be reappropriated to other projects. If they are not reappropriated prior to their expiration date, they expire and cannot be used. If there is still an outstanding obligation related to that funding, then the Procurement personnel will have to go back to Congress and secure new current year fiscal year funding.