The chairmen of the House and Senate Appropriations committees should know this week whether they can claim a good start toward their goal of clearing all 12 fiscal 2008 spending bills by the Oct. 1 beginning of the fiscal year.

That hasn’t happened since 1994 — the last time Rep. David R. Obey, D-Wis., and Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., chaired the committees. Before the appropriators can draft the fiscal 2008 bills, they need to know what the overall target will be for discretionary spending. That will be set in the final version of the fiscal 2008 budget resolution (H Con Res 99, S Con Res 21).

Budget conferees are expected to meet later this week, after they are formally appointed. Even before they finish their work, they could reach a deal on the discretionary spending cap for fiscal 2008. That would allow the two Appropriations committee chairmen to decide how to divide the total among the subcommittees and get to work on drafting the 12 spending bills.

Obey wants to have the first bill on the House floor the week of May 21, with all 12 through the chamber by the Fourth of July recess. Byrd’s committee doesn’t plan to begin markups until early June.