WASHINGTON — House Republicans Tuesday unveiled legislation to get rid of AmeriCorps, the national service program, and cut off federal funding for National Public Radio, public television and Planned Parenthood.

The moves would come in a controversial spending bill that pays for labor, health and education programs for the budget year beginning Oct. 1.

The measure is dead on arrival with Democrats but contains many provisions to please tea party conservatives.

“This bill is an extremely partisan proposal, stands little chance of even being brought up on the House floor, and will rightly be disregarded by both the Senate and the president,” said Rep. Norm Dicks of Washington, top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee.

It’s the last of 12 annual spending bills for the upcoming budget year to be released. The GOP-controlled House has passed six of the measures but the Democratic Senate has yet to debate a single measure, and lawmakers are sure to have to pass a stopgap funding bill in September to avoid a government shutdown when the fiscal year ends on Sept. 30.

The bill would deny funding to implement President Barack Obama’s health care law but, Democrats say, funnels more than $3 billion of those savings to cover other expenditures such as keeping grants for community health centers at current levels. Overall, the measure cuts funding under lawmakers’ direct control by 4 percent to $150 billion.

 

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