This week, the Senate was scheduled to consider the Commerce, Justice, State, and the Judiciary and the VA-HUD-Independent Agencies spending bills, but action on both bills stalled as the Senate spent much of the week debating judicial nominations. The Senate approved the military construction conference report, which will now go to the White House for the President’s signature.
To date, only 4 of the 13 spending bills have been enacted into law: defense, homeland security, interior, and legislative branch. Conference committees hope to complete work on the remaining Senate-approved spending bills before November 21: agriculture; energy and water; Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education; and foreign operations. The remaining spending bills will likely be wrapped into an omnibus appropriations bill before Congress adjourns for the year.
Commerce, Justice, State, and the Judiciary
The Senate was expected to consider the FY2004 Commerce, Justice, State, and the Judiciary spending bill (H.R. 2799) this week, but after a nine-hour filibuster by Minority Whip Harry Reid (D-NV) on November 10, the leadership pulled the bill from the schedule. It will likely become part of an omnibus appropriations bill later this month.
The Senate Appropriations Committee approved its version of the spending bill (S. 1585) on September 4 (see The Source, 9/5/03). S. 1585 would provide $38.4 billion in FY2004, $1.2 billion more than FY2003, $700 million more than the President’s request, and $500 million more than was approved by the House on July 22 (see The Source, 7/25/03).
Military Construction
On November 12, the Senate approved, 98-0, the conference report for the FY2004 Military Construction spending bill (H.R. 2559). The House approved the conference report for H.R. 2559 on November 5 (see The Source, 11/7/03).
H.R. 2559 would allocate $9.316 billion in FY2004, a $1.382 billion decrease from the FY2003 level and $199 million more than the President’s request.
Under the measure, $3.8 billion would be allocated for military family housing, of which $1.1 billion would be allocated for new family housing units and improvements to existing units, and $2.7 billion would be used for the operation and maintenance of existing units. Congress allocated $4.23 billion in FY2003 for military family housing.
In addition, the measure would allocate $16.5 million for child development centers. In FY2003, Congress provided $18 million for child development centers.
VA-HUD-Independent Agencies
On November 12, the Senate began its consideration of the FY2004 VA-HUD-Independent Agencies spending bill (H.R. 2861). The text of S. 1584, as approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee on September 4 (see The Source 9/5/03), will be substituted for the bill.
Prior to Senate consideration, an additional $1.3 billion was included for VA health programs, bringing the total allocation for the bill to $124 billion in FY2004. This represents a $5.3 billion increase over FY2003, $1.9 billion above the President’s request, and $1.3 billion more than the House approved on July 25 (see The Source, 7/25/03).
S. 1584 would provide $1.325 billion for homeless programs, $107.9 million more than FY2003 and equal to the President’s budget request. Of the amount provided, $194 million would be allocated for the renewal of Shelter Plus Care contracts, which provide supportive housing for homeless people with disabilities and their families.
In addition, the bill would include $291 million for the Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) program, $898,000 more than FY2003, but $6 million less than the President’s request. In the Senate Appropriations Committee report accompanying S. 1584, the committee “requires HUD to allocate these funds in a manner that preserves existing HOPWA programs to the extent those programs are determined to be meeting the needs of persons with AIDS.”
During consideration of the measure, the Senate approved, by unanimous consent, an amendment by Sen. Christopher Bond (R-MO) that would express the sense of the Senate that housing vouchers are a critical resource and that HUD should ensure that all vouchers will be made available to low-income families.
