Last week, Congress approved a continuing resolution to fund government programs until December 17, 2005. The House and Senate both approved the conference reports for the FY2006 Military Quality of Life and Veterans Affairs and Transportation, Treasury, Housing and Urban Development, the Judiciary, and the District of Columbia spending bills. The Senate also approved the conference reports for the FY2006 Science, State, Justice, Commerce, and Related Agencies and Energy and Water Development spending bills. In addition, the House considered the conference report for the FY2006 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education spending bill, but a vote to approve the bill was defeated, 209-224.
Congress has now passed nine of the eleven FY2006 appropriations bills: Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies; Legislative Branch; Department of Homeland Security; Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies; and Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs; Energy and Water Development; Science, State, Justice, Commerce, and Related Agencies; Military Quality of Life and Veterans Affairs; and Transportation, Treasury, Housing and Urban Development, the Judiciary, and the District of Columbia
House and Senate Action
Continuing Resolution
On November 17, the House approved, 413-16, a continuing resolution (H. J. Res. 72) to fund government programs until December 17, 2005. A previous continuing resolution expired at midnight on November 18.
The Senate approved the continuing resolution by voice vote on November 18. Prior to the final vote, Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) offered an amendment that would have maintained funding for the Community Services Block Grant program at its FY2005 funding level. The amendment was rejected, 46-50.
Under the continuing resolution, government programs would be funded at their FY2005 level, the FY2006 level set in the House-passed bill, or the FY2006 level set in the Senate-passed bill, whichever is lowest. The continuing resolution would cover all bills that have not yet been signed by President Bush. To date, only five of the eleven FY2006 appropriations bills have been enacted into law: Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies; Legislative Branch; Department of Homeland Security; Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies; and Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs.
House Appropriations Committee Chair Jerry Lewis (R-CA) spoke briefly, explaining that the resolution “simply includes a change of date extending our work through December 17 in order to give the President and others enough time to review these conference reports and other pieces of legislation being sent to the administration in rapid fire.”
Expressing his concern that the FY2006 spending bills have not yet been completed, Ranking Member David Obey (D-WI) stated, “This country is in the middle of fighting a war. That war has a huge cost, and yet the Republican majority is in pursuit of its goal of providing huge tax cuts, a huge percentage of which will be put into the pockets of the most wealthy people in this country. Their desire to do that has led them to a willingness to borrow whatever it takes in order to put money in those pockets and then use the resulting deficit as a reason to cut back on a number of other bills. They use it as a reason to make significant cuts in education, in health, in science, environmental protection and the rest, and then pretend that the cost of Katrina is what made them do it, when, in fact, the cost of tax cuts for persons in the top one percent of income in this country over the next decade will cost about 10 times as much as the cost of Katrina. So then we are forced, because of the squeeze, to endure delays, and we have to bring forward a continuing resolution such as we are doing today. And I would point out that after we have gone through all of this effort, we, in the end, are probably still going to be stuck with an omnibus appropriations bill at the end, despite the fact that the majority party indicated they were going to move heaven and Earth in order to avoid such an eventuality.”
Military Quality of Life and Veterans Affairs
On November 18, the House approved, 427-0, the conference report for the FY2006 Military Quality of Life and Veterans Affairs spending bill (H.R. 2528). The Senate approved the conference report by unanimous consent later the same day. It will now go to the White House to be signed into law by President Bush.
The final bill allocates $45.4 billion in FY2006, a $3.1 billion increase over FY2005 and $300 million more than the administration’s request.
Under the bill, $4.02 billion is provided for military family housing, $20 million more than FY2005, but $220 million less than the budget request. Of that amount, $1.81 billion is allocated for new family housing units and improvements to existing units, and $2.21 billion is used for the operation and maintenance of existing units.
The conferees “feel the Department of Veterans Affairs should consider designating specialized medical treatment facilities for mental health and post-traumatic stress disorders as ‘Centers of Excellence.’ Establishing these centers would allow the VA to consolidate personnel, training and specialized resources. This will ensure the VA utilizes these resources in the most efficient manner, while providing better services to our Nation’s veterans. The conferees are concerned that mental health care is one of the most critical needs of our Nation’s veterans, particularly those veterans returning from Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom.”
Funding for defense health programs will be included in the FY2006 Department of Defense spending bill (H.R. 2863) as approved by the Senate on September 28 (see The Source, 9/30/05).
Transportation, Treasury, Housing and Urban Development, the Judiciary, and the District of Columbia
On November 18, the House approved the FY2006 Transportation, Treasury, Housing and Urban Development, the Judiciary, and the District of Columbia spending bill (H.R. 3058). The Senate approved the conference report by unanimous consent later the same day. It will now go to the White House to be signed into law by President Bush.
The final bill allocates $65.9 billion in FY2006, a $2.7 billion increase over FY2005 and $5.2 billion more than the administration’s request.
Department of Transportation
As requested by President Bush, $900,000 is provided for the Minority Business Resource Center, a $7,200 increase over FY2005. The center “provides assistance in obtaining short-term working capital and bonding for disadvantaged, minority, and women-owned businesses.” The center also “enables qualified businesses to obtain loans at prime interest rates for transportation-related projects.” In addition, $3 million is included for minority business outreach, $24,000 more than FY2005 and equal to the budget request.
The bill includes funding for the job access and reverse commute grants and the occupant protection incentive grants. In addition, $6 million is earmarked for child safety and booster seat grants.
Department of Housing and Urban Development
Under the bill, $1.34 billion is provided for homeless programs, $99.5 million more than FY2005, but $100 million less than the budget request. The total includes $238 million to renew all expiring Shelter Plus Care contracts. In addition, $11.7 million would be provided for the national homeless data analysis project.
As requested by the administration, the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness receives $1.8 million in FY2006, $300,000 more than FY2005. The conferees “direct the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness to conduct an assessment of the guidance disseminated by the Department of Education, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and other related Federal agencies for grantees of homeless assistance programs on whether such guidance is consistent with and does not restrict the exercise of education rights provided to parents, youth, and children…The assessment shall address whether practices, outreach, and training efforts of said agencies serve to protect and advance such rights.”
In FY2006, the Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS program receives $289 million. This amount is $5 million above FY2005 and $21 million more than the budget request. The program “provides States and localities with resources and incentives to devise long-term comprehensive strategies to meet the housing needs of persons with HIV/AIDS and their families.”
The measure includes $15.6 billion for Section 8 voucher renewals, $870 million above the FY2005 level, but $209 million less than the amount requested by the administration.
Fair housing activities receive $46.5 million in FY2006, $100,000 less than FY2005 and $7.7 million more than the amount requested by President Bush. Of that amount, $26 million is provided for the Fair Housing Assistance Program and $20 million for the Fair Housing Initiatives Program.
H.R. 3058 provides $152 million for the Lead Hazard Reduction Program, $33 million more than the budget request. The total includes $76.9 million for the lead-based paint hazard control program to provide assistance for lead-based abatement in private low-income housing. In addition, $9.5 million is provided for the Healthy Homes Initiative “to address lead-based paint poisoning and other housing-related diseases and hazards.”
In FY2006, the American Dream Downpayment Assistance Initiative receives $25 million, $24.6 million below the FY2005 level and $175 million less than the administration’s request.
Under the bill, level funding of $42 million is provided for housing counseling programs in FY2006. This amount is $2 million above the budget request.
The Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation receives $118 million in FY2006, a $3.9 million increase over FY2005 as requested by the administration.
The measure provides $61 million for the Self-Help and Assisted Homeownership Opportunity Program, a new account “proposed by the Administration to fund programs that previously have been funded as set asides within the Community Development Fund (CDF).” The total includes $20 million for the Self-Help Homeownership Program, a $5 million decrease below FY2005 and $10 million less than the amount requested by the administration.
The bill provides $50 million for the Youthbuild program, $12 million less than FY2005. Under the administration’s budget request, the Youthbuild program would have been transferred from HUD to the Department of Labor. The total includes $4 million for grants to establish Youthbuild programs in underserved and rural areas and $1 million for Youthbuild USA for capacity building for community development and affordable housing activities.
Office of National Drug Control Policy
The bill provides $100 million for the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign, a $20 million decrease below the FY2005 level.
H.R. 3058 maintains current law requiring health plans participating in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) to cover prescription contraceptives if they cover other prescription drugs. Physicians and others who provide contraceptives are exempted from the requirement if they object based on religious beliefs. Religiously affiliated health plans also are exempt. Additionally, the measure prohibits abortion coverage under FEHBP, except when the life of the mother is endangered or in the case of rape or incest. The measure also maintains current law permitting breastfeeding at any location in a federal building or on federal property.
District of Columbia
H.R. 3058 allocates $603 million for the District of Columbia in FY2006, a $47 million increase over FY2005 and $29.6 million more than the budget request. As requested by the administration, the bill provides $219 million in FY2006 for the operation of the D.C. Courts, $29.8 million more than the FY2005 level. The total includes funding for the Family Court, which handles all cases in the District pertaining to child abuse and neglect, domestic violence, adoption, and foster care.
In FY2006, $40 million is provided for D.C. schools. This amount is $300,000 above FY2005, but $1.62 million less than the budget request. Of the total, $13 million is allocated for D.C. public schools and $13 million for charter schools. In addition, $14 million is provided for “opportunity scholarships.”
H.R. 3058 allocates $3 million for a new initiative to establish marriage development accounts and pre-marriage development accounts in the District of Columbia. The conferees “require that, in the event that a couple divorces prior to withdrawing funds from their marriage development account, each may withdraw what they have individually contributed but neither will be entitled to the Federal-private matching funds in the account. However, if a spouse is convicted of domestic abuse, the other partner shall be entitled to his or her share of the Federal-private match. The conferees further direct the Capital Area Asset Building Corporation to contract with an appropriate research firm to evaluate the implementation and determine the success of marriage development accounts.”
Included in the bill is a provision that maintains current law prohibiting the use of federal funds to implement a D.C. law that permits municipal employees to purchase health insurance benefits for their domestic partners, regardless of gender or marital status.
H.R. 3058 also maintains current law with respect to the prohibition on the use of local and federal funds for abortion coverage for low-income women on Medicaid. Exceptions for abortion coverage are made in cases of rape, incest, or life endangerment.
In addition, the measure maintains current law prohibiting the use of local and federal funds for a needle exchange program.
Senate Action
Science, State, Justice, Commerce, and Related Agencies
On November 16, the Senate approved, 94-5, the conference report for the FY2006 Science, State, Justice, Commerce, and Related Agencies spending bill (H.R. 2862). The House approved the measure on November 9 (see The Source, 11/14/05). It will now go to the White House to be signed into law by President Bush.
H.R. 2862 allocates $57.85 billion in FY2006, a $1.61 billion increase over FY2005, but $2.5 billion less than the administration’s request.
