Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education: FY2008 Appropriations
Congressional research reportFeb 1, 2008
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Order Code RL34076
Labor, Health and Human Services,
and Education: FY2008 Appropriations
Updated February 1, 2008
Pamela W. Smith, Coordinator,
Gerald Mayer, and Rebecca R. Skinner
Domestic Social Policy Division
The annual consideration of appropriations bills (regular, continuing, and supplemental) by
Congress is part of a complex set of budget processes that also encompasses the
consideration of budget resolutions, revenue and debt-limit legislation, other spending
measures, and reconciliation bills. In addition, the operation of programs and the spending
of appropriated funds are subject to constraints established in authorizing statutes.
Congressional action on the budget for a fiscal year usually begins following the submission
of the President’s budget at the beginning of each annual session of Congress.
Congressional practices governing the consideration of appropriations and other budgetary
measures are rooted in the Constitution, the standing rules of the House and Senate, and
statutes, such as the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974.
This report is a guide to one of the regular appropriations bills that Congress considers each
year. It is designed to supplement the information provided by the House and Senate
Appropriations Subcommittees on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and
Related Agencies. It summarizes the status of the bill, its scope, major issues, funding
levels, and related congressional activity, and is updated as events warrant. The report lists
the key CRS staff relevant to the issues covered and related CRS products.
NOTE: A Web version of this document with active links is
available to congressional staff at [http://apps.crs.gov/cli/cli.aspx?
PRDS_CLI_ITEM_ID=2347&from=3&fromId=73].
Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education:
FY2008 Appropriations
Summary
This report tracks FY2008 appropriations for the Departments of Labor, Health
and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (L-HHS-ED). This
legislation provides discretionary funds for three major federal departments and 14
related agencies. The report, which will not be further updated, summarizes
L-HHS-ED discretionary funding issues but not authorization or entitlement issues.
On February 5, 2007, the President submitted the FY2008 budget request to
Congress, including $141.7 billion in discretionary L-HHS-ED funds; the comparable
FY2007 amount was $144.7 billion. The House passed H.R. 3043 (H.Rept. 110231), providing $154.2 billion for L-HHS-ED programs. The Senate reported S.
1710 (S.Rept. 110-107), then later passed H.R. 3043, amended, with $152.3 billion
in discretionary funds. The conference report (H.Rept. 110-424), providing $153.3
billion, was vetoed on November 13, 2007; the House failed to override the veto on
November 15. A series of four continuing resolutions provided temporary FY2008
funding until enactment of P.L. 110-161, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008,
on December 26, 2007. Division G of the act provided $148.7 billion for
discretionary L-HHS-ED programs.
Department of Labor (DOL). DOL discretionary appropriations were $11.7
billion for FY2008, an increase of $7 million (0.1%) over funding for FY2007. The
request for FY2008 was $11.0 billion, including a reduction in Workforce Investment
Act (WIA) programs of $632 million. P.L. 110-161 increased funding for WIA by
$52 million over FY2007 funding of $5.1 billion.
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). HHS discretionary
appropriations were $65.6 billion for FY2008, an increase of $1.5 billion (2.3%) over
the FY2007 level of $64.1 billion. The Administration requested $63.2 billion. The
act increased funding over FY2007 by $77 million for Health Centers, $304 million
for Health Care-Related Facilities and Activities, $329 million for the National
Institutes of Health, and $409 million for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance
Program (LIHEAP). Funding for Buildings and Facilities at the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention decreased by $79 million.
Department of Education (ED). ED discretionary appropriations were $59.4
billion for FY2008, an increase of $2.0 billion (3.4%) over funding for FY2007.
Funding for the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), reauthorized by
the No Child Left Behind Act (P.L. 107-110), was $24.6 billion for FY2008, an
increase of $1.1 billion over funding for FY2007 and an increase of $99 million over
the FY2008 request of $24.5 billion.
Related Agencies. Discretionary appropriations for L-HHS-ED related
agencies were $12.0 billion for FY2008, an increase of $438 million (3.8%) over the
FY2007 level of $11.5 billion. The Administration requested $11.3 billion. P.L.
110-161 increased funding for Social Security Administration (SSA) administrative
expenses by $451 million for FY2008, up from $9.3 billion for FY2007.
Key Policy Staff for L-HHS-ED Appropriations
Area of Expertise
Coordinator
Name
Pamela W. Smith
Department of Labor (DOL)
DOL appropriations coordinator
Gerald Mayer
Job training and employment services
Blake Alan Naughton
Labor market information
Linda Levine
Labor standards enforcement
William G. Whittaker
Mine Safety and Health Administration
Linda Levine
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
Linda Levine
Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs
Scott Szymendera
Older Americans Act, employment programs
Angela Napili
Kirsten Colello
Pension and welfare benefits
Patrick Purcell
Trade adjustment assistance
John Topoleski
Unemployment compensation
Julie M. Whittaker
Veterans employment
Christine Scott
Workforce Investment Act
Blake Alan Naughton
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
HHS appropriations coordinator
Pamela W. Smith
Abortion, legal issues
Karen J. Lewis
Jon Shimabukuro
Abortion procedures
Judith A. Johnson
AIDS, Ryan White programs
Judith A. Johnson
Bioterrorism, HHS funding
Sarah Lister
Cancer research
Judith A. Johnson
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Sarah A. Lister
Child care and development
Melinda Gish
Child welfare
Emilie Stoltzfus
Adrienne L. Fernandes
Cloning, stem cell research
Judith A. Johnson
Erin D. Williams
Family Planning, Title X
Angela Napili
Federal health centers
Barbara English
Head Start
Melinda Gish
Health professions education and training
Bernice Reyes-Akinbileje
Health Resources and Services Administration
Bernice Reyes-Akinbileje
Immunization
Pamela W. Smith
Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program
Libby Perl
Maternal and Child Health Block Grant
Angela Napili
Medicaid
Elicia J. Herz
Medicare
Holly Sue Stockdale
Needle exchange, AIDS
Judith A. Johnson
NIH, health research policy
Pamela W. Smith
Older Americans Act
Angela Napili
Pandemic Influenza/Bird Flu
Sarah A. Lister
Public Health Service
Pamela W. Smith
Refugee Resettlement Assistance
Andorra Bruno
Telephone
7-7048
7-7815
7-0376
7-7756
7-7759
7-7756
7-7756
7-0014
7-0135
7-7839
7-7571
7-2290
7-2587
7-7366
7-0376
7-7048
7-6190
7-7990
7-7077
7-7077
7-7320
7-7077
7-7320
7-4618
7-2324
7-9005
7-7077
7-4897
7-0135
7-1927
7-4618
7-2260
7-2260
7-7048
7-7806
7-0135
7-1377
7-9553
7-7077
7-7048
7-0135
7-7320
7-7048
7-7865
Area of Expertise
Runaway Children and Homeless Youth
Social Services Block Grant
State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP)
Stem cell research, cloning
Name
Adrienne L. Fernandes
Melinda Gish
Evelyne P. Baumrucker
Judith A. Johnson
Erin D. Williams
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Ramya Sundararaman
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
Gene Falk
Department of Education (ED)
ED appropriations coordinator
Rebecca R. Skinner
Adult education and literacy
Gail McCallion
After-school programs
Gail McCallion
Assessment in education
Wayne C. Riddle
Career (vocational) and technical education
Rebecca R. Skinner
Charter schools
David Smole
College costs and prices
Blake Alan Naughton
Education block grants
Rebecca R. Skinner
Education for the Disadvantaged, Title I
Wayne C. Riddle
Education technology
Rebecca R. Skinner
Elementary and Secondary Education
Wayne C. Riddle
English language acquisition
Rebecca R. Skinner
Higher education
David Smole
Blake Alan Naughton
Impact Aid
Rebecca R. Skinner
Indian education
Roger Walke
Pell Grants
Blake Alan Naughton
Reading programs
Gail McCallion
Rehabilitation Act
Scott Szymendera
Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities
Gail McCallion
Special education, IDEA
Richard N. Apling
Special education, IDEA, legal issues
Nancy Lee Jones
Special education, IDEA, state grants
Ann Lordeman
Student aid/need analysis
Blake Alan Naughton
Student loans
David Smole
Teacher recruitment, preparation, and training
Jeffrey J. Kuenzi
Gail McCallion
21st Century Community Learning Centers
Related Agencies
Corporation for National and Community Service
Ann Lordeman
(VISTA, Senior Corps, AmeriCorps)
Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Glenn J. McLoughlin
Institute of Museum and Library Services
Gail McCallion
National Labor Relations Board
Gerald Mayer
National Labor Relations Board, legal issues
Jon O. Shimabukuro
Railroad Retirement Board
Kathleen Romig
Social Security Administration
Kathleen Romig
Dawn Nuschler
Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
Scott Szymendera
Telephone
7-9005
7-4618
7-8913
7-7077
7-4897
7-7285
7-7344
7-6600
7-7758
7-7758
7-7382
7-6600
7-0624
7-0376
7-6600
7-7382
7-6600
7-7382
7-6600
7-0624
7-0376
7-6600
7-8641
7-0376
7-7758
7-0014
7-7758
7-7352
7-6976
7-2323
7-4894
7-0624
7-8645
7-7758
7-2323
7-7073
7-7758
7-7815
7-7990
7-3742
7-3742
7-6283
7-0014
Contents
Most Recent Developments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008 Enacted
(P.L. 110-161, H.R. 2764) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Third and Fourth Continuing Resolutions (CRs) Enacted
(P.L. 110-137 and P.L. 100-149) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
H.R. 3043 Vetoed, Override Failed in House . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
FY2008 Continuing Resolution Extended . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Conference Agreement on H.R. 3043 Passed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Senate Version of H.R. 3043 Passed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Continuing Resolution P.L. 110-92 Enacted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
House Bill H.R. 3043 Reported and Passed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Senate Bill S. 1710 Reported . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
President’s Budget Submitted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Note on Most Recent Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Overview and Key Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Discretionary and Mandatory Funding: Program Level and
Current Year Appropriations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Discretionary Funding Trends, FY2002-FY2008 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Discretionary Appropriations by Bill Title, FY2007-FY2008 . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Major Discretionary Programs, FY2007-FY2008 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
FY2008 Appropriations: President’s Request . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
FY2008 Appropriations: House Bill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
FY2008 Appropriations: Senate Bill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
FY2008 Appropriations: Conference Report on H.R. 3043 (Vetoed) . . . . . 14
Public Law: P.L. 110-161, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008 . . . . . 16
Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2008 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
302(a) and 302(b) Allocation Ceilings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Advance Appropriations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Department of Labor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Key Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
President’s Request . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
House Bill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Senate Bill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Conference Report (Vetoed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Public Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
CRS Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Websites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Detailed Appropriations Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Department of Health and Human Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Key Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
President’s Request . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
House Bill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Senate Bill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Conference Report (Vetoed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Public Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Abortion: Funding Restrictions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Funding Restrictions . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
CRS Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Websites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Detailed Appropriations Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Department of Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Key Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
President’s Request . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
House Bill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Senate Bill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Conference Report (Vetoed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Public Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
New Programs and Program Eliminations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
ESEA Funding Shortfall? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
IDEA Funding Shortfall? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Maintaining Integrity and Ethical Values in the Department of
Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Forward Funding and Advance Appropriations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Potential Problem with the Treatment of Prior Year
Advance Funding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
CRS Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Websites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Detailed Appropriations Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Related Agencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Key Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
President’s Request . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
House Bill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Senate Bill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Conference Report (Vetoed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Public Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
CRS Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Websites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Detailed Appropriations Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Appendix A. Terminology and Web Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Websites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
List of Tables
Table 1. Legislative Status of L-HHS-ED Appropriations, FY2008 . . . . . . . . . . 3
Table 2. L-HHS-ED Appropriations Summary, FY2007-FY2008 . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Table 3. Discretionary Funding Trends, FY2002-FY2008 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Table 4. L-HHS-ED Discretionary Funding by Bill Title,FY2007-FY2008 . . . . 8
Table 5. Major Discretionary Programs, FY2007-FY2008 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Table 6. FY2008 302(b) Discretionary Allocations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Table 7. Department of Labor Discretionary Appropriations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Table 8. Detailed Department of Labor Appropriations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Table 9. Department of Health and Human Services Discretionary
Appropriations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Table 10. Detailed Department of Health and Human Services
Appropriations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Table 11. Department of Education Discretionary Appropriations . . . . . . . . . . 36
Table 12. Detailed Department of Education Appropriations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Table 13. Related Agencies Discretionary Appropriations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Table 14. Detailed Related Agencies Appropriations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Labor, Health and Human Services,
and Education: FY2008 Appropriations
Most Recent Developments
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008 Enacted (P.L. 110-161, H.R.
2764). On December 17, 2007, after lengthy negotiations between Congress and the
Administration, the House and Senate Appropriations Committees released bill text
and an explanatory statement for an omnibus appropriations bill. It had a division
for each of the 11 regular appropriations measures that had not yet been enacted (all
except Defense), plus provisions for emergency war funding. The bill, an amended
version of H.R. 2764 (originally the State/Foreign Operations appropriations bill),
required additional amending with regard to the war funding before finally being
passed by both houses and sent to the President, who signed it on December 26,
2007. For further details on proceedings relative to H.R. 2764, see CRS Report
RL34298, Consolidated Appropriations Act for FY2008: Brief Overview, by Robert
Keith. Division G of the law provided the FY2008 appropriations for the
Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related
Agencies (L-HHS-ED), including $148.7 billion in discretionary funding.
Third and Fourth Continuing Resolutions (CRs) Enacted (P.L. 110137 and P.L. 100-149). On December 14, 2007, the President signed into law
H.J.Res. 69 (P.L. 110-137), which extended temporary funding for government
agencies to December 21, 2007. A fourth CR, H.J.Res. 72, signed on December 21,
extended funding from December 22 through December 31, or until enactment of
regular appropriations.
H.R. 3043 Vetoed, Override Failed in House. On November 13, 2007,
the President vetoed H.R. 3043, the FY2008 appropriations bill for L-HHS-ED. He
cited total discretionary spending levels in the bill that were higher than he had
requested. On November 15, an attempt to override the veto failed in the House by
a vote of 277-141 (two-thirds majority required).
FY2008 Continuing Resolution Extended. On November 13, 2007, the
President signed into law H.R. 3222, the FY2008 Department of Defense
appropriations act (P.L. 110-116), which also, in Division B, amended the first
FY2008 continuing resolution, P.L. 110-92, to extend temporary funding for
government agencies to December 14, 2007. Most agency activities for which there
was not yet a regular appropriation received funding under the CR at the FY2007 rate
of operations.
Conference Agreement on H.R. 3043 Passed. On November 5, 2007,
House and Senate conferees filed a conference report (H.Rept. 110-424) on H.R.
CRS-2
3043, which included their agreement on the L-HHS-ED bill, and also appended a
conference version of appropriations for Military Construction/Veterans Affairs
(MilCon/VA, H.R. 2642). The House agreed to the combined measure on November
6. On November 7, the Senate sustained a point of order against the combination bill
and subsequently passed a substitute conference report that dropped the MilCon/VA
language. The House agreed to the Senate amendment on November 8, and H.R.
3043 was sent to the President. The bill as reported by the conference committee
would have provided $153.3 billion in discretionary funds for L-HHS-ED programs.
Senate Version of H.R. 3043 Passed. On October 17, 2007, the Senate
began debating a substitute version of H.R. 3043, consisting of the text of S. 1710 but
without the reported bill’s final section relating to research on human embryonic
stem cells. The bill was passed, amended, on October 23, 2007, by a vote of 75-19.
The bill would have provided $152.3 billion in discretionary funds for L-HHS-ED
programs.
Continuing Resolution P.L. 110-92 Enacted. On September 29, 2007,
the President signed into law P.L. 110-92 (H.J.Res. 52), which provided temporary
funding at the FY2007 rate of operations for government agencies, including most
L-HHS-ED activities, for the period October 1 through November 16, 2007, unless
regular FY2008 appropriations measures were enacted sooner.
House Bill H.R. 3043 Reported and Passed. On July 13, 2007, the
House Committee on Appropriations reported H.R. 3043 (H.Rept. 110-231), its
proposal for FY2008 L-HHS-ED appropriations. The bill was debated in the House
July 17-19 and was passed, with several amendments, on July 19, 2007, by a vote of
276-140. The bill would have provided $154.2 billion in discretionary funds for
L-HHS-ED programs.
Senate Bill S. 1710 Reported. On June 27, 2007, the Senate Committee on
Appropriations reported S. 1710 (S.Rept. 110-107), its proposal for FY2008 L-HHSED appropriations. The bill would have provided $152.1 billion in discretionary
funds for L-HHS-ED.
President’s Budget Submitted. On February 5, 2007, the President
submitted the FY2008 budget to Congress; the request was for $141.7 billion in
discretionary funds for L-HHS-ED programs.
Table 1 summarizes the legislative status of FY2008 L-HHS-ED appropriations.
CRS-3
Table 1. Legislative Status of L-HHS-ED Appropriations, FY2008
Subcommittee
Markup
House
Senate
6/7/07a 6/19/07b
Conference
Report Approval
House
House
Senate
Senate
Committee Passage Committee Passage
Conf.
Report
7/13/07c
H.R. 3043,
7/19/07d
H.Rept.
110-231
11/5/07g
H.Rept.
110-424
6/27/07e
S. 1710,
S.Rept.
110-107
10/23/07f
H.R. 3043
House
Passage
Senate
Passage
11/6/07
11/8/07h
11/7/07h
Veto
11/13/07
11/15/07i
Amended Bill
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008, H.R. 2764 (LaborHHS-ED is Division G)
(amended text; H.R. 2764 was originally the State, Foreign
Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2008)
Text
House
Passage
Senate
Passage
Public
Law
12/26/07l
12/17/07j
12/17/07
k
Congr.
12/18/07 P.L. 11012/19/07k
Record
161
a. The House Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations began
FY2008 hearings on Feb. 15, 2007. The Subcommittee marked up its version of the FY2008 L-HHS-ED appropriations
on June 7, 2007, approving it by a voice vote.
b. The Senate Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations began
FY2008 hearings on Mar. 14, 2007. The Subcommittee marked up its version of the FY2008 L-HHS-ED bill on June
19, 2007, and approved it by voice vote.
c. H.R. 3043: The House Committee on Appropriations approved its version of the L-HHS-ED appropriations for FY2008
on July 11, 2007, by voice vote, and ordered the bill reported. Subsequently, H.R. 3043 (H.Rept. 110-231) was
introduced and reported on July 13, 2007.
d. H.R. 3043: The House debated the bill on July 17-19 and passed it, amended, on July 19, 2007, by a vote of 276-140.
e. S. 1710: The Senate Committee on Appropriations approved the draft L-HHS-ED bill with a manager’s amendment on June
21, 2007, by a vote of 26-3, and ordered the bill reported. Subsequently, S. 1710 (S.Rept. 110-107) was introduced and
reported on June 27, 2007.
f. H.R. 3043: The Senate debated a substitute version of the bill (text of S. 1710 minus new stem cell provisions) on Oct. 1723, 2007, and passed it, amended, on Oct. 23, 2007, by a vote of 75-19.
g. H.R. 3043: Conference report H.Rept. 110-424 was filed Nov. 5, 2007. It included not only the agreement on L-HHS-ED
appropriations but also the agreement on appropriations for Military Construction/Veterans Affairs (MilCon/VA,
previously H.R. 2642), combined into one bill.
h. H.R. 3043: The House approved the combined conference agreement on Nov. 6, 2007, by a vote of 269-142. On Nov. 7,
the Senate sustained a point of order against the MilCon/VA language having been added to H.R. 3043, by a vote of 4746 (60 votes would have been needed to waive the point of order). Subsequently, the Senate approved a substitute
amendment that retained only the L-HHS-ED language, by a vote of 56-37. On Nov. 8, the House agreed to the Senate
amendment to H.R. 3043 by a vote of 274-141.
i. H.R. 3043: The President vetoed the FY2008 Labor-HHS-ED appropriations act on Nov. 13, 2007. An override attempt
failed in the House on Nov. 15 by a vote of 277-141 (two-thirds majority needed).
j. H.R. 2764: A Rules Committee resolution was reported to the House (H.Res. 878, H.Rept. 110-497) on Dec. 17, 2007,
which provided for the House to consider two amendments to the Senate amendment to H.R. 2764, the FY2008 State/
Foreign Operations appropriations bill. The amendments were printed in H.Rept. 110-497, and also in the Dec. 17
Congressional Record, Book I. The first House amendment replaced the text of H.R. 2764 with a new Consolidated
Appropriations Act, 2008, consisting of 11 divisions (A-K). The divisions represented compromise versions of the 11
regular appropriations acts that had not yet been enacted (L-HHS-ED was Division G). The second House amendment
was Division L, providing the House’s version of emergency supplemental appropriations for military operations and
war funding. A joint explanatory statement providing comments from the Appropriations Committees and tables for
each division was printed in the Dec. 17 Congressional Record, Books II and III.
k. H.R. 2764: On Dec. 17, 2007, the House agreed to the first House amendment by a vote of 253-154, agreed to the second
House amendment by a vote of 206-201, and sent the package to the Senate. On Dec. 18, the Senate concurred in the
second House amendment with an amendment of its own, substituting its version of emergency supplemental military
operations/war funding for the House version, by a vote of 70-25. The Senate also concurred in the first House
amendment by a vote of 76-17. On Dec. 19, the House agreed to the Senate amendment to the second House amendment
by a vote of 272-142, clearing the measure for the President.
l. P.L. 110-161: On Dec. 26, 2007, the President signed H.R. 2764 into law. Four continuing resolutions, beginning with P.L.
110-92, provided temporary FY2008 funding for most L-HHS-ED activities from Oct. 1 through Dec. 26, 2007.
CRS-4
Note on Most Recent Data. In this report, unless stated otherwise, data on
FY2007 appropriations and FY2008 appropriations proposals are based on the
explanatory statement of the Appropriations Committees accompanying H.R. 2764,
as printed in the December 17, 2007, Congressional Record, Book II, and as reflected
in the December 17, 2007, table of the House Appropriations Committee. In most
cases, data represent net funding for specific programs and activities, and take into
account current and forward funding and advance appropriations; however, all data
are subject to additional budgetary scorekeeping. Except where noted, data refer only
to those programs within the purview of L-HHS-ED appropriations, and not to all
programs within the jurisdiction of the relevant departments and agencies. Funding
from other appropriations bills, and entitlements funded outside of the annual
appropriations process, are excluded.
The FY2007 data reflect the funding provided under the terms of the Revised
Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2007 (P.L. 110-5, H.J.Res. 20), which was
signed into law on February 15, 2007. A series of continuing resolutions (CRs),
beginning with P.L. 109-289, had provided temporary L-HHS-ED funding from
October 1, 2006, through February 15, 2007. The final CR provided specific levels
of funding for FY2007 for some agencies and programs, while those activities not
specifically listed were generally funded at FY2006 levels. In addition, agencies
received funding for a portion of their increased pay costs. Final funding levels
became known in late March 2007 after the Office of Management and Budget and
the agencies had worked out their spending plans for FY2007 and conveyed the
information to Congress. Subsequently, Congress passed an FY2007 supplemental
appropriations act, P.L. 110-28, the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans’ Care, Katrina
Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act, 2007, signed into law on May
25, 2007. The law had a few provisions that affected FY2007 funding levels for
some L-HHS-ED agencies. FY2007 figures in this report take account of those
changes.
For additional information, please see CRS Report RL30343, Continuing
Resolutions: FY2008 Action and Brief Overview of Recent Practices, by Sandy
Streeter.
Overview and Key Issues
This report describes the President’s proposal for FY2008 appropriations for
L-HHS-ED programs, as submitted to Congress on February 5, 2007, and the
congressional response to that proposal. It compares the President’s FY2008 request
to the FY2007 L-HHS-ED amounts. It tracks legislative action and congressional
issues related to the L-HHS-ED appropriations bill, with particular attention paid to
discretionary programs. However, the report does not follow specific funding issues
related to mandatory L-HHS-ED programs — such as Medicare or Social Security
— nor does it follow any authorizing legislation that may be needed prior to funding
some of the President’s budget initiatives. For a glossary of budget terms and
relevant websites, see Appendix A, “Terminology and Web Resources.”
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The L-HHS-ED bill typically is one of the more controversial of the regular
appropriations bills, not only because of the size of its funding total and the scope of
its programs, but also because of the continuing importance of various related issues,
such as restrictions on the use of federal funds for abortion and stem cell research.
This bill provides discretionary and mandatory funds to three federal departments and
14 related agencies, including the Social Security Administration (SSA).
Discretionary funding represents only one-quarter of the total in the bill.
Among the various appropriations bills, L-HHS-ED is the largest single source
of discretionary funds for domestic (non-defense) federal programs (the Department
of Defense bill is the largest source of discretionary funds among all federal
programs). This section presents several overview tables on funding in the bill,
particularly discretionary funding; summarizes major funding changes proposed and
enacted for L-HHS-ED; and discusses related issues such as 302(b) allocations and
advance appropriations. Later sections provide details on individual L-HHS-ED
departments and agencies.
Discretionary and Mandatory Funding: Program Level and
Current Year Appropriations
Table 2 summarizes the L-HHS-ED appropriations for FY2008, including both
discretionary and mandatory appropriations. The table shows various aggregate
measures of L-HHS-ED appropriations enacted for FY2007 and proposed and
enacted for FY2008, including the discretionary program level, current year level,
and advance appropriations, as well as scorekeeping adjustments.
!
!
!
Program level discretionary appropriations reflect the total
discretionary appropriations in a given bill, regardless of the year in
which they will be spent, and therefore include advance funding for
future years. Unless otherwise specified, appropriations levels in this
report refer to program level amounts.
Current year discretionary appropriations represent discretionary
appropriations in a given bill for the current year, plus discretionary
appropriations for the current year that were enacted in prior years
— for example, FY2008 appropriations that were enacted in the
FY2007 act. As the annual congressional appropriations process
unfolds, current year discretionary appropriations, including
scorekeeping adjustments (see below), are measured against the
302(b) allocation ceilings (discussed later in this report). Note that
media reports and comments from the Administration about
appropriations activities typically cite figures representing the
current year discretionary totals rather than the program levels in the
bill.
Advance appropriations are funds that will not become available
until after the fiscal year for which the appropriations are enacted
(for example, funds for certain education programs like Title I Part
A Grants to Local Educational Agencies for the Education of the
Disadvantaged that were included in the FY2007 act that could not
be spent before FY2008 at the earliest, discussed later in this report).
CRS-6
!
Scorekeeping adjustments are made to account for special funding
situations, as monitored by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).
Because appropriations may consist of mixtures of budget authority enacted in
various years, two summary measures are frequently used: program level
appropriations and current year appropriations. How are these measures related? For
an “operational definition,” program level funding equals (a) current year, plus (b)
advances for future years, minus (c) advances from prior years, and minus
(d) scorekeeping adjustments. Alternatively, current year funding is derived by
taking the program level (total in the bill), subtracting the advances for future years,
adding in the advances from prior years, and applying the scorekeeping adjustments.
Table 2 shows each of these amounts for discretionary funding, along with current
year funding and program level funding for mandatory programs, and the grand total
for L-HHS-ED.
Table 2. L-HHS-ED Appropriations Summary, FY2007-FY2008
($ in billions)
FY2007
Enacted
FY2008
Request
FY2008
House
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
Program level: current bill for
any year
144.7
141.7
154.2
152.3
148.7
Current year: current year from
any bill (after scorekeeping)
144.6
140.9
151.7
149.9
144.8
Advances for future years (in the
current bill)
19.3
18.9
21.3
21.3
21.3
Advances from prior years (from
previous bills)
19.3
19.3
19.3
19.3
18.9
Scorekeeping adjustments
-0.1
-1.2
-0.5
-0.5
-1.5
Type of Budget Authority
Discretionary Appropriations
Current Year Discretionary and Mandatory Funding
Discretionary (compare to
302(b) cap)
144.6
140.9
151.7
149.9
144.8
Mandatory
401.2
455.5
455.7
455.7
455.3
Total, current year
545.8
596.4
607.4
605.5
600.1
Program Level Totals of Funding for L-HHS-ED Bill, Any Year
Discretionary program level
144.7
141.7
154.2
152.3
148.7
Mandatory program level
409.3
455.4
455.7
455.6
455.3
Grand total, any year
554.0
597.2
609.9
608.0
603.9
Source: Amounts are based on the Dec. 17, 2007, table from House Appropriations Committee,
reflecting the explanatory statement on Division G of H.R. 2764, Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2008, printed in Congressional Record, Dec. 17, 2007, Book II. Appropriations are given only for
programs included in the annual L-HHS-ED bill.
Note: Details may not add to totals due to rounding. Both FY2007 and FY2008 mandatory amounts
are estimates that are subject to adjustments after the close of their respective fiscal years. All amounts
in the table are subject to change through the enactment of further supplementals and rescissions.
CRS-7
Discretionary Funding Trends, FY2002-FY2008
The L-HHS-ED appropriations bills include both mandatory and discretionary
funds; however, the Appropriations Committees fully control only the discretionary
funds. Mandatory funding levels for programs included in the annual appropriations
bills are modified through changes in the authorizing legislation. Typically, these
changes are accomplished through authorizing committees by means of reconciliation
legislation, and not through appropriations committees in annual appropriations bills.
Table 3 shows the trend in discretionary budget authority enacted in the
L-HHS-ED appropriations for FY2002 through FY2008. During the past seven
years, L-HHS-ED discretionary funds have grown from $127.2 billion in FY2002 to
$148.7 billion in FY2008, an increase of $21.5 billion, or 16.9%. Adjusted for
inflation during this same period, using the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) deflator,
L-HHS-ED discretionary funds in estimated FY2007 dollars have grown from $145.0
billion in FY2002 to $145.2 billion in FY2008, an increase of $0.2 billion, or 0.1%.
Table 3. Discretionary Funding Trends, FY2002-FY2008
(budget authority in billions of dollars)
Type of Funds
FY2002 FY2003 FY2004 FY2005 FY2006 FY2007 FY2008
L-HHS-ED
discretionary
127.2
132.4
139.7
143.4
141.5
144.7
148.7
L-HHS-ED
discretionary in
estimated FY2007
dollars
145.0
147.9
152.2
151.6
145.1
144.7
145.2
GDP deflator
(FY2000 = 1.0)
1.0432
1.0643
1.0918
1.1251
1.1598 1.1892
1.2180
Sources: The GDP deflator is based on the Budget of the United States Government, Historical
Tables, Fiscal Year 2008, Table 10.1. L-HHS-ED totals for FY2002-FY2005 discretionary budget
authority are based on annual conference reports for L-HHS-ED appropriations and, therefore, may
not be completely comparable from year to year. FY2006 L-HHS-ED discretionary total is based on
the April 17, 2007, table of the House Committee on Appropriations. FY2007 and FY2008 totals are
based on the Dec. 17, 2007, committee table, reflecting P.L. 110-161.
Discretionary Appropriations by Bill Title, FY2007-FY2008
The annual L-HHS-ED appropriations act typically includes five titles. The first
three provide appropriations and program direction for the Department of Labor
(Title I), the Department of Health and Human Services (Title II), and the
Department of Education (Title III). Each of the three titles includes some sections
of “General Provisions” for the department; they provide specific program directions,
modifications, or restrictions that the appropriators wish to convey in bill language,
not just in report language. Title IV covers funding for 14 related agencies, the
largest of which is the Social Security Administration. Title V contains general
provisions with broader application than those in the department titles. Occasionally,
CRS-8
one or more additional titles are added to the act, which may be legislative
(authorizing) language rather than appropriations provisions. The FY2008 L-HHSED appropriations act includes a Title VI that provides for establishment of a
National Commission on Children and Disasters.
Table 4 summarizes the program level discretionary spending that was provided
in the first four titles of the FY2007 and FY2008 L-HHS-ED appropriations and
compares the program level totals with the current year discretionary totals.
Table 4. L-HHS-ED Discretionary Funding by Bill Title,
FY2007-FY2008
($ in millions)
FY2007
Enacted
FY2008
Request
FY2008
House
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
Discretionary Appropriations, Program Level (total in bill for any year)
Title I, Department of Labor
11,686
10,964
11,844
11,935
11,693
Title II, Department of Health
64,054
63,195
68,366
68,140
65,555
and Human Services
Title III, Department of
57,473
56,225
62,086
60,108
59,444
Education
Title IV, Related Agencies
11,522
11,326
11,914
12,128
11,960
Total discretionary, program
144,735
141,710
154,209
152,311 148,652
level
Total Discretionary, Current Year from Any Bill (after scorekeeping adjustments)
Total, current year
144,617
140,916
151,719
149,857 144,841
Source: Amounts are based on the Dec. 17, 2007, table from House Appropriations Committee,
reflecting the explanatory statement on Division G of H.R. 2764, Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2008, printed in Congressional Record, Dec. 17, 2007, Book II. Appropriations are given only for
programs included in the annual L-HHS-ED bill.
Major Discretionary Programs, FY2007-FY2008
Among the discretionary programs funded in the bill, which are the largest?
Table 5 shows the L-HHS-ED discretionary programs with the highest funding
levels; in both FY2007 and FY2008, eight programs accounted for at least 62% of
all L-HHS-ED discretionary appropriations. Each of the programs shown in Table
5 received more than $3.0 billion each year, and the aggregate funding for this group
was $90.6 billion in FY2007 and $93.5 billion in FY2008. As shown in the previous
tables, L-HHS-ED discretionary funding totaled $144.7 billion in FY2007 and $148.7
billion in FY2008.
CRS-9
Table 5. Major Discretionary Programs, FY2007-FY2008
($ in millions)
Major Program
FY2007
Enacted
FY2008
Request
FY2008
House
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
National Institutes of Health (NIH)
28,900
28,621
29,670
29,900
29,229
Pell Grants
13,661
13,414
15,583
14,487
14,215
Title I Part A Education for the
Disadvantaged, Grants to LEAs
12,838
13,910
14,363
13,910
14,028
IDEA Special Education, Part B
Grants to States
10,783
10,492
11,342
11,240
11,042
SSA Total Administrative Expenses
9,296
9,597
9,697
9,872
9,747
Head Start
6,889
6,789
6,964
7,089
6,902
WIA, all programs
5,134
4,502
5,235
5,247
5,186
CMS Program Management
3,141
3,274
3,230
3,248
3,152
Major L-HHS-ED subtotal
90,641
90,598
96,084
94,992
93,501
Other L-HHS-ED discretionary
54,094
51,112
58,125
57,320
55,151
L-HHS-ED discretionary total
144,735
141,710
154,209
152,311
148,652
Major programs as a % of total
62.6%
63.9%
62.3%
62.4%
62.9%
Source: Amounts are based on the Dec. 17, 2007, table from House Appropriations Committee,
reflecting the explanatory statement on Division G of H.R. 2764, Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2008, printed in Congressional Record, Dec. 17, 2007, Book II.
Note: LEAs = Local Educational Agencies; IDEA = Individuals with Disabilities Education Act;
WIA = Workforce Investment Act; CMS = Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
FY2008 Appropriations: President’s Request
On February 5, 2007, the President’s FY2008 request was submitted to
Congress, prior to completion of the FY2007 appropriations process. With regard
to the President’s budget, the primary issues raised during congressional
consideration of any appropriations request generally relate to proposed funding
changes, as well as to the overall level of support for programs. The following
summary highlights changes of at least $100 million proposed in FY2008
discretionary budget authority in comparison with the FY2007 amount. Viewing this
list by itself should be done with caution, since the relative impact of a $100 million
funding change to a $500 million program (a 20% increase or decrease) is greater
than a $100 million change to a $5 billion program (a 2% increase or decrease).
Later in this report, the discussion of budgets for individual departments includes
tables to compare the FY2008 request with the FY2007 funding for many of the
major programs in the L-HHS-ED bill.
Budget Highlights. Overall, $141.7 billion in discretionary appropriations
were requested for L-HHS-ED for FY2008, $3.0 billion (2.1%) less than the FY2007
amount of $144.7 billion.
CRS-10
!
For the Department of Labor (DOL), the Administration’s FY2008
request included a decrease of $632 million for WIA programs, from
$5.1 billion for FY2007 to $4.5 billion for FY2008. The proposed
reduction included $357 million less for Dislocated Worker
Assistance programs (funded at $1.5 billion in FY2007), $152
million less for Adult Training grants to states, and $100 million less
for Youth Training. The Administration proposed a decrease of
$134 million for the Community Service Employment for Older
Americans program. Overall, $11.0 billion in FY2008 discretionary
appropriations were requested for DOL, a 6.2% reduction from the
FY2007 amount of $11.7 billion.
!
For the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the
FY2008 request proposed an increase of $1.04 billion for the Public
Health and Social Services Emergency Fund (PHSSEF), covering
homeland security activities and Pandemic Influenza Preparedness.
Decreases were proposed of $175 million for Health Professions
programs other than those for nursing, $187 million for Children’s
Hospitals Graduate Medical Education (CHGME), $104 million for
Rural Health Programs, $114 million for Buildings and Facilities at
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and $279
million for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). A $183 million
initiative for Fraud and Abuse Control at the Centers for Medicare
and Medicaid Services (CMS) was proposed, along with a $133
million increase for CMS Program Management. Decreases of $379
million for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program
(LIHEAP) and $100 million for Head Start were requested. The
$630 million Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) received no
funding in the request. Overall, $63.2 billion in FY2008
discretionary appropriations were requested for HHS, 1.3% less than
the FY2007 amount of $64.1 billion.
!
For the Department of Education (ED), the FY2008 request
proposed an increase of $993 million for Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) programs in the aggregate. Funding
for Title I, Part A, Grants to Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) for
the Education of the Disadvantaged would have been increased by
$1.1 billion. The request included proposals for three new K-12
education initiatives of at least $100 million, including $250 million
for Promise Scholarships. School Improvement Grants would have
been increased by $375 million, and the Teacher Incentive Fund
would have been increased by $199 million. The request proposed
the elimination of the $272 million Educational Technology State
Grants. The Fund for the Improvement of Education would have
been reduced by $100 million, and a decrease of $247 million was
requested for the Safe and Drug-Free Schools State Grants. A
decrease of $291 was requested for the Special Education Part B
Grants to States program authorized by the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Funding for the Perkins Career
and Technical Education program would have been decreased by
CRS-11
$686 million. The request proposed the elimination of the $771
million Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants. Pell Grants
would have been reduced by $247 million. Overall, $56.2 billion in
FY2008 discretionary appropriations were requested for ED, 2.2%
less than the FY2007 amount of $57.5 billion.
!
For the related agencies, the Administration’s request for FY2008
would have increased funding for SSA administrative expenses by
$301 million, up from $9.3 billion for FY2007. (Funding for SSA
administrative expenses is in an account called Limitation on
Administrative Expenses.) The Administration’s FY2008 budget
proposed to eliminate the two-year advance appropriations for the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), which was provided
with a two-year advance appropriation of $400 million in the
FY2007 bill. Overall, $11.3 billion in FY2008 discretionary
appropriations were requested for L-HHS-ED related agencies, a
1.7% decrease from FY2007 appropriations of $11.5 billion.
FY2008 Appropriations: House Bill
The House Committee on Appropriations reported its version of the FY2008
L-HHS-ED appropriations as H.R. 3043 (H.Rept. 110-231) on July 13, 2007. The
House debated the bill on July 17-19, 2007, and passed it, amended, on July 19,
2007, by a vote of 276 to 140.
House Highlights. Overall, the House bill would have provided FY2008
discretionary appropriations of $154.2 billion for L-HHS-ED programs. The
President requested $141.7 billion; the FY2007 amount was $144.7 billion. The
House bill differed from the President’s request in a number of details.
!
For DOL, the House bill would have provided $5.2 billion for WIA
programs, $734 million more than the Administration’s request. The
House would have funded WIA Dislocated Worker Assistance
programs at $1.5 billion, the same amount appropriated for FY2007
and $357 million more than the Administration’s request. The
House would have funded WIA Adult Training grants to states at
$864 million, the same as FY2007 and $152 million more than the
Administration’s request. WIA Youth Training programs would
have been funded at the same level as FY2007 and at $100 million
more than the Administration’s request of $841 million. The House
would have increased funding for the Job Corps by $127 million
above the amount requested and by $71 million above FY2007
appropriations of $1.6 billion. The House would have funded
Community Service Employment for Older Americans at $531
million, or $181 million above the Administration’s request and $47
million more than FY2007. Overall, the House bill would have
provided $11.8 billion in discretionary funds for DOL; $11.0 billion
was requested; and $11.7 billion was provided for FY2007.
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!
For HHS, the House bill would have funded Health Centers at $2.19
billion, $200 million more than the request. Health Professions
other than nursing would have received $228 million, $219 million
more than requested. The CHGME would have received $307
million, $197 million more than requested. Rural Health programs
would have received $145 million, $120 million more than the
request. Health Care-Related Facilities and Activities would have
received $128 million; no funds were requested. The CDC
Infectious Diseases program would have received $1.90 billion,
$119 million more than requested. The Preventive Health and
Health Services Block Grant (PHBG) would have received $109
million; no funds were requested. The National Institutes of Health
(NIH) would have received $29.67 billion, $1.05 billion more than
requested. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
(AHRQ) would have received a specific appropriation of $283
million, plus indirect funding of $47 million, for a total of $330
million; the request was for indirect funding of $330 million. The
CMS Fraud and Abuse Control initiative would have received $383
million; $183 million was requested. LIHEAP would have received
$2.66 billion, $880 million more than requested. Head Start would
have received $6.96 billion, $175 million more than requested. The
CSBG would have been funded at $660 million; no funds were
requested. Overall, the House bill would have provided $68.4
billion in discretionary funds for HHS; $63.2 billion was requested;
and $64.1 billion was provided for FY2007.
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For ED, the House bill would have provided $25.5 billion for ESEA
programs in the aggregate, $1.0 billion more than was requested.
Title I, Part A Grants to Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) would
have received $453 million more than was requested, while Reading
First State Grants would have received $665 million less than
requested. The House bill would not have funded any of the
President’s proposed initiatives, including Promise Scholarships.
Teacher Quality State Grants would have received $400 million
more than was requested, and Education Technology State Grants
would have received $272 million, rather than being eliminated as
called for by the request. The House bill would have provided $125
million more for the 21st Century Community Learning Centers,
$147 million more for the Fund for the Improvement of Education,
$247 million more for the Safe and Drug-Free Schools State Grants,
and $104 million more for the English Language Acquisition State
Grants than requested. IDEA, Part B Grants to States would have
received $850 million more than was requested. Perkins Career and
Technical Education would have received $710 million more than
requested. Pell Grants would have received $2.2 billion more than
requested. The House would have increased the maximum
appropriated Pell Grant award to $4,700. Federal Supplemental
Opportunity Grants would have received $771 million, rather than
being eliminated as called for by the request. Aid for Institutional
Development for higher education would have received $159 million
CRS-13
more than requested. Departmental Management would have
received $227 million less than requested. Overall, the House would
have provided $62.1 billion in FY2008 discretionary appropriations
for ED, $5.9 billion more than the request of $56.2 billion and $4.6
billion more than the FY2007 amount of $57.5 billion.
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For related agencies, the bill approved by the House would have
provided $9.7 billion in funding for SSA administrative expenses,
which is $100 million more than the Administration’s request and
$401 million more than appropriated for FY2007. The House would
have provided the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) with
$420 million in advance funding for FY2010. The Administration
did not request funds for FY2010. Overall, the House would have
provided $11.9 billion in discretionary funds for related agencies,
$588 million more than requested and $392 million more than
appropriated for FY2007.
FY2008 Appropriations: Senate Bill
The Senate Committee on Appropriations reported its version of the FY2008
L-HHS-ED appropriations as S. 1710 (S.Rept. 110-107) on June 27, 2007. In
October, when the Senate took up H.R. 3043, the text of S. 1710 (minus a
controversial section relating to embryonic stem cell research) was substituted for the
House-passed bill. The Senate debated the bill on October 17-23, 2007, and passed
it, amended, on October 23, 2007, by a vote of 75 to 19.
Senate Highlights. Overall, the Senate version of H.R. 3043, as passed,
would have provided FY2008 discretionary appropriations of $152.3 billion for
L-HHS-ED programs. The House bill would have provided $154.2 billion; the
President requested $141.7 billion. The comparable FY2007 amount was $144.7
billion. The Senate bill differed from the House proposal in a number of ways.
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For DOL, the Senate bill does not differ significantly from the House
bill. Overall, the Senate would have provided $11.9 billion in
discretionary funds for DOL, $91 million more than the House, $971
million more than requested, and $249 million more than
appropriated for FY2007.
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For HHS, the Senate bill would have provided $107 million less
than the House bill for CHGME, $138 million less for Infectious
Diseases at the CDC, $210 million more for CDC Buildings and
Facilities, $230 million more for NIH, $501 million less for
LIHEAP, $125 million more for Head Start, and $10 million more
for the CSBG. Overall, the Senate bill would have provided $68.1
billion in discretionary appropriations for HHS programs, $226
million less than the House amount of $68.4 billion, $4.9 billion
more than the requested amount of $63.2 billion, and $4.0 billion
more than HHS funding of $64.1 billion in FY2007.
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For ED, the Senate bill would have provided $24.6 billion for ESEA
programs in the aggregate, $926 million less than would have been
provided by the House. Title I, Part A Grants to LEAs would have
received $453 million less than the House amount, and Teacher
Quality State Grants would have been funded at $300 million less
than the House amount. Reading First State Grants would have
received $447 million more than the House amount. The 21st
Century Community Learning Centers would have received $106
million less than the House amount, and IDEA Part B Grants to
States would have received $102 million less than the House
amount. The Senate bill would have provided $14.5 billion for Pell
Grants, $1.1 billion less than the House amount. The maximum
appropriated Pell Grant award would have been $4,310 compared
with a House maximum appropriated Pell Grant award of $4,700.
Aid for Institutional Development for higher education would have
received $140 million less than the House amount. Departmental
Management would have received $202 million more than the
House amount. Overall, the Senate bill would have provided $60.1
billion in FY2008 discretionary appropriations for ED, $2.0 billion
less than the House amount of $62.1 billion and $2.6 billion more
than the FY2007 amount of $57.5 billion.
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For related agencies, the Senate bill would have provided $175
million more than the House bill for SSA administrative expenses.
Overall, the Senate would have provided $12.1 billion in
discretionary funds for related agencies, $215 million more than the
House, $802 million more than requested, and $606 million more
than appropriated for FY2007.
FY2008 Appropriations: Conference Report on H.R. 3043
(Vetoed)
On November 5, 2007, House and Senate conferees filed a conference report
(H.Rept. 110-424) on H.R. 3043, which included their agreement on the FY2008 LHHS-ED bill, and also appended a conference version of appropriations for Military
Construction/Veterans Affairs (MilCon/VA, H.R. 2642). The House adopted the
report on the combined measure on November 6 by a vote of 269-142. On
November 7, the Senate sustained a point of order against the combination bill and
subsequently adopted, by a vote of 56-37, a substitute conference report that dropped
the MilCon/VA language. The House agreed to the Senate amendment on November
8 by a vote of 274-141, and H.R. 3043 was sent to the President. On November 13,
2007, the President vetoed H.R. 3043, citing total discretionary spending levels in the
bill that were higher than he had requested. On November 15, an attempt to override
the veto failed in the House by a vote of 277-141 (two-thirds majority required).
Conference Report Highlights. Overall, the conference version of H.R.
3043 would have provided discretionary appropriations at the program level of
$153.3 billion for L-HHS-ED programs. The Senate bill would have provided
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$152.3 billion, the House bill would have provided $154.2 billion, and the President
requested $141.7 billion. The comparable FY2007 amount was $144.7 billion.
The President’s objections to what he termed the “excessive” spending in the
bill were usually discussed by referring to the current year (FY2008) funding levels
(see Table 2 and its preceding discussion for the differences in the two portrayals of
the budget). In current year terms, the conference report would have provided $150.7
billion for discretionary L-HHS-ED programs, $9.8 billion (6.9%) higher than the
President’s requested level of $140.9 billion. The conference level would have been
an increase of $6.1 billion (4.2%) over the FY2007 level of $144.6 billion, whereas
the President’s request represented a decrease of $3.7 billion (-2.6%) from FY2007.
A number of programs would have shared in the $6.1 billion increase that the
conference report funding level would have provided. Compared to FY2007 funding
levels, the FY2008 program level discretionary amounts would have been increased
or decreased by at least $100 million for the following programs.
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For DOL, the WIA program would have received an increase in
funding of $135 million, up from $5.1 billion for FY2007. Overall,
DOL would have received $12.0 billion in discretionary funding for
FY2008, $0.3 billion more than in FY2007.
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For HHS, funding would have been increased by the following
amounts compared to FY2007: Community Health Centers, $225
million; Health Care-Related Facilities and Activities, $318 million;
NIH, $1.1 billion; CMS Program Management, $135 million; CMS
Fraud and Abuse Control Initiative, $383 million; LIHEAP, $250
million; Head Start, $154 million; and Public Health and Social
Services Emergency Fund, $788 million. Overall, HHS would have
received $68.5 billion in discretionary funding for FY2008, $4.4
billion more than in FY2007.
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For ED, ESEA programs would have received $25.1 billion in the
aggregate, $1.6 billion more than in FY2007. Several K-12
education programs would have received an increase in funding
from FY2007 to FY2008: Title I, Part A Grants to LEAs would have
increased $1.5 billion; School Improvement Grants would have
increased $375 million; Teacher Quality State Grants would have
increased $150 million; the 21st Century Community Learning
Centers would have increased $100 million; the Fund for the
Improvement of Education would have increased $104 million; and
IDEA Part B Grants to States would have been funded at $509
million more than in FY2007. The only K-12 education program
that would have lost $100 million or more would have been the
Reading First State Grants, which would have received $629 million
less than in FY2007. Two postsecondary education programs would
have received increases of $100 million or more, and no
postsecondary education programs would have lost a commensurate
amount. Pell Grants would have received $837 million more than
in FY2007. The maximum appropriated Pell Grant award would
CRS-16
have been $4,435, a $125 increase over the maximum award of
$4,310 in FY2007. The Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary
Education would have been funded at $104 million more than in
FY2007. Overall ED would have received $60.7 billion in
discretionary funding, $3.2 billion more than in FY2007.
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For the related agencies, the SSA would have received an increase
of $576 million for administrative expenses, up from $9.3 billion for
FY2007. Overall, the related agencies would have received $12.1
billion in discretionary funding, $0.6 billion more than in FY2007.
Public Law: P.L. 110-161, Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2008
With enactment of the FY2008 Department of Defense appropriation (P.L. 110116, November 13, 2007) and the veto of H.R. 3043, Congress still faced the
challenge of completing action on the remaining 11 appropriations bills. The
President insisted that total FY2008 current year discretionary funding be no more
than the $932.8 billion he had requested. The total FY2008 discretionary budget
authority planned by Congress was about $23 billion higher. Congressional
negotiators first attempted a “split the difference” approach, reworking their
priorities into an omnibus measure with scaled-back funding that met the President
halfway. In the face of continued veto threats, however, the Appropriations
Committees finally prepared a consolidated measure that conformed to the
President’s totals.
Each of the 11 subcommittees took its own approach to meeting the revised
ceiling it had been given for funding its programs. About half, including the L-HHSED subcommittee, used an across-the-board rescission as the final means of reaching
the desired total. For L-HHS-ED accounts, all programs, projects, and activities
(except Pell Grants) were to be reduced by a factor of 1.747% from the levels listed
in the “amended bill” (which seem to represent the levels figured for the “split the
difference” interim proposal).
The final text of the proposed Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008,
accompanied by an explanatory statement that took the place of a conference report,
was released by the Appropriations Committees late Sunday night, December 16,
2007. On December 17, a resolution from the House Rules Committee (H.Res. 878,
H.Rept. 110-497) provided that the measure would be handled as a House
amendment to the Senate-passed version of H.R. 2764, the FY2008 State/Foreign
Operations appropriations bill. The resolution also provided for a second House
amendment, dealing with emergency supplemental appropriations for military
operations and war funding. The documents were all made available on the Rules
Committee website and were printed in the Congressional Record of December 17,
2007. The L-HHS-ED section was Division G (for bill language, see H.Rept. 110497, and for the explanatory statement and table of budget authority, see
Congressional Record, December 17, 2007, Book II, pp. H16178-H16371).
CRS-17
By December 19, both the main amendment and a revised version of the war
funding amendment had been agreed to by the House and the Senate, clearing the
measure for the President. He signed H.R. 2764 into law on December 26, 2007; it
became P.L. 100-161. For a summary of proceedings relative to H.R. 2764, see notes
j, k, and l in Table 1, above, and for further details, see CRS Report RL34298,
Consolidated Appropriations Act for FY2008: Brief Overview, by Robert Keith.
FY2008 Funding Highlights. As shown in Table 2, P.L. 100-161 provided
discretionary appropriations at the program level of $148.7 billion for L-HHS-ED
programs, compared to $152.3 billion in the Senate bill, $154.2 billion in the House
bill, and $141.7 billion in the President’s request. The comparable FY2007 amount
was $144.7 billion.
In current year terms (the amounts generally cited by the President when
making comparisons to his budget), P.L. 110-161 provided $144.8 billion for
discretionary L-HHS-ED programs, an increase of $3.9 billion (2.8%) over the
President’s requested level of $140.9 billion. The FY2008 total was an increase of
$224 million (0.15%) over the FY2007 level of $144.6 billion, whereas the
President’s request represented a decrease of $3.7 billion (-2.6%) from FY2007. By
way of comparison, estimated current year funding for mandatory L-HHS-ED
programs was slated to increase by $54.1 billion (13.5%), from $401.2 billion in
FY2007 to $455.3 billion in FY2008.
Note the following caution about reading funding amounts from the law or the
explanatory statement: All amounts mentioned in the text of P.L. 110-161 or the
explanatory statement have not been reduced by the 1.747% rescission required by
section 528 of the law. That reduction must be applied to every program, project, or
activity, excluding the Pell Grant program, funded by the L-HHS-ED appropriations
act. For programs listed in the detailed table at the end of the Division G explanatory
statement (pp. H16337-H16370 of the December 17, 2007, Congressional Record),
the calculations have been provided and the final appropriation for a given program
should be read from the column labeled “Amended Bill Less 1.747%.” For programs
not listed in the table, the reduction must be calculated by hand based on the amount
found in the text (an easy way to do this is to multiply the amount mentioned in the
text by 0.98253).
Section 528 of the act provided that the actual application of this reduction to
individual accounts and line items was to be determined by the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB). Within 30 days of enactment, OMB was required
to report back to the Committees on Appropriations specifying each account and
amount of the reduction resulting from the 1.747% rescission. In addition, section
518 gave the L-HHS-ED departments and related agencies 45 days from enactment
to submit an FY2008 operating plan, detailing any funding allocations for programs,
projects, or activities that differed from those in the act, the explanatory statement,
or the budget request.
Compared to FY2007 funding levels, the FY2008 program level discretionary
amounts were increased or decreased by at least $100 million for the following
programs. Additional details and funding amounts are provided in separate agency
summaries.
CRS-18
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For FY2008, all programs in DOL were funded within $100 million
of FY2007 appropriations. Overall, DOL received an increase in
funding of $7 million, up from $11.7 billion for FY2007.
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For HHS, funding was increased by the following amounts
compared to FY2007: Health Care-Related Facilities and Activities,
$304 million; NIH, $329 million; and LIHEAP, $409 million.
Overall, HHS received $65.6 billion in discretionary funding for
FY2008, $1.5 billion more than in FY2007.
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For ED, ESEA programs were funded at $24.6 billion in the
aggregate, $1.1 billion more than in FY2007. Several K-12
education programs received an increase in funding from FY2007 to
FY2008: Title I, Part A Grants to LEAs were increased by $1.2
billion; School Improvement Grants were increased by $366 million;
the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program was
increased by $100 million; and IDEA Part B Grants to States were
funded at $259 million more than in FY2007. The only K-12
education program that lost $100 million or more was the Reading
First State Grants program, which received $636 million less than in
FY2007. One postsecondary education program received an
increase of $100 million or more — Pell Grants received $554
million more than in FY2007. The maximum appropriated Pell
Grant award was $4,241, a $69 decrease in the appropriated
maximum award of $4,310 in FY2007. Overall ED received $59.4
billion in discretionary funding, $2.0 billion more than in FY2007.
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For the related agencies of L-HHS-ED, the SSA received an increase
of $451 million for administrative expenses, up from $9.3 billion for
FY2007. Overall, the related agencies received $12.0 billion in
discretionary funding for FY2008, an increase of $0.4 billion from
FY2007.
Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2008
A continuing appropriations resolution, P.L. 110-92 (H.J.Res. 52), was enacted
on September 29, 2007, to provide temporary FY2008 funding for most ongoing LHHS-ED activities, including the costs of direct loans and loan guarantees, for the
period October 1 through November 16, 2007, unless regular appropriations were
enacted before the end of that period. An FY2008 continuing resolution was
necessary because the regular L-HHS-ED appropriations were not enacted by the start
of FY2008 on October 1, 2007. The CR was amended three times to extend the
temporary funding period while Congress worked on the regular appropriations
measures. Division B of P.L. 110-116 (November 13, 2007) extended temporary
funding through December 14, 2007; P.L. 110-137 (December 14, 2007) changed the
date to December 21, 2007; and P.L. 110-149 (December 21, 2007) changed the date
to December 31, 2007, although the need for the CR ended with enactment of P.L.
110-161 on December 26, 2007.
CRS-19
Under the FY2008 continuing resolution, the funding level for each activity was
provided at a rate of operations like that provided in FY2007 appropriations acts and
under the same conditions and authority. Only the most limited funding actions were
authorized in order to provide for the continuation of projects and activities. New
initiatives were prohibited. For programs with high spend-out rates that normally
would occur early in the fiscal year, special restrictions prohibited spending levels
that would impinge on final FY2008 funding decisions. For entitlements and other
mandatory activities, obligations were allowed for payments due on or about
November 1, 2007, and December 1, 2007. For additional information, please see
CRS Report RL30343, Continuing Resolutions: FY2008 Action and Brief Overview
of Recent Practices, by Sandy Streeter.
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Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2008, P.L. 110-92
(H.J.Res. 52), provided temporary appropriations for the period
October 1, 2007, through November 16, 2007, as long as regular
appropriations were not enacted sooner. H.J.Res. 52 was passed by
the House on September 26 and by the Senate on September 27, and
signed into law by the President on September 29, 2007, as P.L. 11092.
Further Continuing Appropriations, 2008, Division B of P.L.
110-116 (H.R. 3222), extended the provisions of P.L. 110-92
through December 14, 2007. Division B was added to the
conference report on H.R. 3222, the FY2008 Defense appropriations
bill (H.Rept. 110-434) on November 6, 2007. The House and Senate
agreed to the conference report on November 8, and the President
signed the bill into law on November 13, 2007, as P.L. 110-116.
3rd Continuing Resolution, P.L. 110-137 (H.J.Res. 69), extended
the provisions of P.L. 110-92 through December 21, 2007. H.J.Res.
69 was passed by the House and the Senate on December 13, and
signed into law by the President on December 14, 2007, as P.L. 110137.
4th Continuing Resolution, P.L. 110-149 (H.J.Res. 72), extended
the provisions of P.L. 110-92 through December 31, 2007. H.J.Res.
72 was passed by the House and the Senate on December 19, and
signed into law by the President on December 21, 2007, as P.L. 110149.
302(a) and 302(b) Allocation Ceilings
The maximum budget authority for annual L-HHS-ED appropriations is
determined through a two-stage congressional budget process. In the first stage,
Congress establishes the 302(a) allocations — the maximum spending totals for
congressional committees for a given fiscal year. This task is sometimes
accomplished through the concurrent resolution on the budget, where spending totals
are specified through the statement of managers in the conference report. In years
when the House and Senate do not reach a budget agreement, these totals may be set
through leadership arrangements in each chamber. The 302(a) allocations determine
spending totals for each of the various committees, as well as the total discretionary
budget authority available for enactment in annual appropriations through the House
and Senate Committees on Appropriations.
CRS-20
Congress reached agreement on the FY2008 budget resolution on May 17, 2007,
when the House and Senate agreed to the conference report (H.Rept. 109-153) to
S.Con.Res. 21. The resolution established a 302(a) discretionary budget allocation
of $953.1 billion. For the purpose of comparison, the 302(a) discretionary allocation
agreed to for FY2007 was $872.8 billion. For additional information, please see CRS
Report RL34015, Congressional Budget Actions in 2007, by Bill Heniff Jr.
In the second stage of the annual congressional budget process, the House and
Senate Committees on Appropriations separately establish the 302(b) allocations —
the maximum discretionary budget authority available to each subcommittee for each
annual appropriations bill. The total of these allocations must not exceed the 302(a)
discretionary total. This process creates the basis for enforcing discretionary budget
discipline, since any appropriations bill reported with a total above the ceiling is
subject to a point of order. The 302(b) allocations can and often do get adjusted
during the year as the various appropriations bills progress toward final enactment.
Table 6 shows the 302(b) discretionary allocations for the FY2008 L-HHS-ED
appropriations determined by the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations.
Comparable amounts for the FY2007 appropriations and the President’s FY2008
budget request are also shown. Both the 302(a) and 302(b) allocations regularly
become contested issues in their own right.
Table 6. FY2008 302(b) Discretionary Allocations
(budget authority in billions of dollars)
FY2007
Comparable
FY2008
Request
Comparable
FY2008
House
Allocation
FY2008
Senate
Allocation
FY2008
Enacted
144.6
140.9
151.7
150.2
144.8
Sources: The FY2008 House allocation is based on H.Rept. 110-236, July 17, 2007; the FY2008
Senate allocation is based on S.Rept. 110-250, Dec. 18, 2007. The comparable amounts for FY2007
budget authority, the FY2008 budget request, and the FY2008 enacted appropriations are based on
the Dec. 17, 2007, table from House Appropriations Committee, reflecting the explanatory statement
on Division G of H.R. 2764, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008, printed in Congressional
Record, Dec. 17, 2007, Book II.
Advance Appropriations
Advance appropriations occur when funds enacted in one fiscal year are not
available for obligation until a subsequent fiscal year. For example, P.L. 109-149,
which enacted FY2006 L-HHS-ED appropriations, provided $400 million for the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) for use in FY2008. Advance
appropriations may be used to meet several objectives. These might include the
provision of long-term budget information to recipients, such as state and local
educational systems, to enable better planning of future program activities and
personnel levels. The more contentious aspect of advance appropriations, however,
involves how they are counted in budget ceilings.
CRS-21
Advance appropriations avoid the 302(a) and 302(b) allocation ceilings for the
current year, but must be counted in the year in which they first become available for
obligation. This procedure uses up ahead of time part of what will be counted against
the allocation ceiling in future years. In FY2002, the President’s budget proposed the
elimination of advance appropriations for federal discretionary programs, including
those for L-HHS-ED programs. Congress rejected that proposal, and the proposal
has not been repeated. For an example of the impact of advance appropriations on
program administration, see the discussion titled “Forward Funding and Advance
Appropriations” in the section on the Department of Education, later in this report.
The FY1999 and FY2000 annual L-HHS-ED appropriations bills provided
significant increases in advance appropriations for discretionary programs, moving
from $4.0 billion in FY1998 to $19.0 billion in FY2000. From FY2001 through
FY2007, advance appropriations generally were provided at $19.3 billion , with the
exceptions of $18.8 billion in FY2001 and $21.5 billion in FY2003. For FY2008,
following his pattern of the previous six years, the President requested $18.9 billion
in advance appropriations for L-HHS-ED. Congress decided instead to add $2.0
billion to the previous total; the House bill, the Senate bill, and P.L. 110-161 each
provided $21.3 billion. At that level, advance appropriations accounted for 14.3%
of the L-HHS-ED program level discretionary total of $148.7 billion in the FY2008
appropriations act. In terms of current year funding, advances from previous years,
at $18.9 billion, represented 13.1% of the current year discretionary total for FY2008.
From FY1998 to the present, advance appropriations included in L-HHS-ED
bills have been as follows:
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FY1998, $4.0 billion;
FY1999, $8.9 billion;
FY2000, $19.0 billion;
FY2001, $18.8 billion;
FY2002, $19.3 billion;
FY2003, $21.5 billion;
FY2004, $19.3 billion;
FY2005, $19.3 billion;
FY2006, $19.3 billion;
FY2007, $19.3 billion;
FY2008, President’s budget request, $18.9 billion;
FY2008, House bill, $21.3 billion;
FY2008, Senate bill, $21.3 billion; and
FY2008, P.L. 110-161, $21.3 billion.
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Department of Labor
FY2007 discretionary appropriations for the Department of Labor (DOL) were
$11.7 billion. For FY2008, the Administration requested $11.0 billion, or $0.7
billion (6.2%) less than the FY2007 amount, as shown in Table 7. The House
appropriations bill would have provided $11.8 billion in discretionary spending for
FY2008, and the Senate bill would have provided $11.9 billion. P.L. 110-161
provided $11.7 billion, increasing funding for DOL by $7 million (0.1%).
Table 7. Department of Labor Discretionary Appropriations
($ in billions)
Funding
Appropriations
FY2007
Enacted
FY2008
Request
FY2008
House
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
11.7
11.0
11.8
11.9
11.7
Source: Amounts are based on the Dec. 17, 2007, table from House Appropriations Committee,
reflecting the explanatory statement on Division G of H.R. 2764, Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2008, printed in Congressional Record, Dec. 17, 2007, Book II. Amounts represent discretionary
spending funded by L-HHS-ED appropriations; funds for mandatory programs are excluded.
Mandatory DOL programs included in P.L. 110-161 are funded at $3.0 billion,
and consist of the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund ($1,068 million), Federal
Unemployment Benefits and Allowances ($889 million), Advances to the
Unemployment Insurance and Other Trust Funds ($437 million), Special Benefits for
Disabled Coal Miners ($270 million), Employment Standards Administration (ESA)
Special Benefits ($203 million), and the Energy Employees Occupational Illness
Compensation Fund ($105 million).
Key Issues
President’s Request. The President’s FY2008 budget request for DOL
proposed changes in funding for a number of activities. Proposed discretionary
changes of at least $100 million compared to FY2007 appropriations were as follows:
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1
The Administration’s budget request would have reduced Workforce
Investment Act (WIA) funding by $632 million, from $5.1 billion
for FY2007 to $4.5 billion for FY2008.
The WIA Dislocated Worker Assistance programs, funded at $1.5
billion in FY2007, would have been decreased by $357 million in
FY2008, including a decrease of $287 million for state grants.1
WIA Adult Training grants to states, funded at $864 million in
FY2007, would have been reduced by $152 million.
Appropriations for FY2007 set aside $125 million from the Dislocated Worker Assistance
National Reserve program for the Community College initiative. The President requested
$150 million in direct appropriations for Community College grants.
CRS-23
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!
WIA Youth Training, funded at $941 million in FY2007, would
have been reduced by $100 million.
Community Service Employment for Older Americans would have
fallen by $134 million, from $484 million to $350 million.
House Bill. For DOL programs, the House bill differed by at least $100
million from the President’s budget request, as follows.
!
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The House bill would have raised funding for WIA programs by
$734 million above the Administration’s request and by $101
million above appropriations for FY2007.
The House measure would have funded WIA Dislocated Worker
Assistance programs at $1.5 billion, the same amount appropriated
for FY2007. The House proposal was $357 million more than the
Administration’s request.
The House bill would have funded WIA Adult Training grants to
states at the same level as FY2007 and at $152 million more than the
Administration’s request.
The House would have increased funding for the Job Corps by $127
million above the amount requested and by $71 million above
FY2007 appropriations of $1.6 billion.
WIA Youth Training programs would have been funded at the same
level as FY2007 and at $100 million above the Administration’s
request of $841 million.
The House would have funded Community Service Employment for
Older Americans at $531 million, or $181 million above the
Administration’s request and $47 million more than FY2007.
Senate Bill. The Senate bill did not differ from the House bill by at least $100
million for any DOL program.
Conference Report (Vetoed). Compared to FY2007 funding, the conference
agreement would have changed discretionary spending by at least $100 million for
the WIA program.
!
Funding for WIA would have increased by $135 million, from $5.1
billion for FY2007.
Public Law. Compared to FY2007 funding, P.L. 110-161 increased funding
for WIA programs by $52 million over FY2007 funding of $5.1 billion.
CRS Products
CRS Report RL33687, The Workforce Investment Act (WIA): Program-by-Program
Overview and Funding of Title I Training Programs, by Blake Alan Naughton.
CRS Report RL33362, Unemployment Insurance: Available Unemployment Benefits
and Legislative Activity, by Julie M. Whittaker.
CRS-24
CRS Report RS22718, Trade Adjustment Assistance for Workers (TAA) and
Alternative Trade Adjustment Assistance for Older Workers (ATAA), by John
J. Topoleski.
CRS Report RL33754, Minimum Wage in the 110th Congress, by William G.
Whittaker.
Websites
Department of Labor
[http://www.dol.gov]
[http://www.dol.gov/_sec/Budget2008/overview.htm]
[http://www.doleta.gov/budget/08bud.cfm]
Detailed Appropriations Table
Table 8 shows the appropriations details for offices and major programs of
DOL.
CRS-25
Table 8. Detailed Department of Labor Appropriations
($ in millions)
Office or Major Program
FY2007
Enacted
Total Workforce Investment Act, Title I
5,134
(WIA) (non-add)
Employment and Training Administration (ETA)
Training and Employment Services (TES)
WIA Adult Training Grants to States
864
WIA Youth Training
941
WIA Dislocated Worker Assistance
1,472
(DWA)
DWA State Grants (non-add)
1,190
DWA National Reserve Community
125
College initiative set aside (non-add)a
DWA National Reserve, other (non157
add)a
WIA Migrant and Seasonal
80
Farmworkers
WIA Community College Grants
0
(Community-Based Job Training)a
Other WIA and TES Activities
200
TES subtotal
3,556
Community Service Employment for
484
Older Americans
Federal Unemployment Benefits and
838
Allowances (mandatory)b
State Unemployment Insurance and
Employment Service Operations
2,508
(SUI/ESO) Unemployment
Compensation
SUI/ESO Employment Service
749
SUI/ESO Employment Service State
716
Grants (non-add)
SUI/ESO One-Stop Career Centers
64
SUI/ESO Work Incentives Grants
20
SUI/ESO subtotal
3,340
Advances to Unemployment Trust
465
Fund and other funds (mandatory)
ETA Program Administration
200
ETA subtotal
8,883
Employee Benefits Security
142
Administration
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation
405
program level (non-add)
Employment Standards Administration (ESA)
ESA Salaries and Expenses
421
Office of Labor-Management
48
Standards (non-add)
ESA Special Benefits (mandatory)
227
FY2008
Request
FY2008
House
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
4,502
5,235
5,247
5,186
712
841
864
941
864
941
862
924
1,115
1,472
1,472
1,465
903
1,190
1,190
1,184
0
125
150
123
212
157
132
158
0
84
80
80
150
0
0
0
305
2,972
170
3,531
231
3,587
246
3,576
350
531
484
522
889
889
889
889
2,561
2,561
2,561
2,464
722
759
750
736
689
726
716
703
56
0
3,339
53
10
3,383
56
20
3,387
52
14
3,266
437
437
437
437
216
8,203
171
8,940
186
8,969
172
8,862
147
143
143
139
411
411
411
411
448
437
439
421
57
46
46
45
203
203
203
203
CRS-26
Office or Major Program
FY2007
Enacted
ESA Special Benefits for Disabled
297
Coal Miners (mandatory)
ESA Energy Employees Occupational
Illness Compensation Fund
102
(mandatory)
ESA Black Lung Disability Trust Fund
1,070
(mandatory)
ESA subtotal
2,117
Occupational Safety and Health
487
Administration (OSHA)
Mine Safety and Health
302
Administration (MSHA)
Bureau of Labor Statistics
548
Office of Disability Employment
28
Policy
Departmental Management
WIA Job Corpsc
1,578
International Labor Affairs
73
Veterans Employment and Training
223
Departmental Management, other
299
Departmental Management subtotal
2,173
Working Capital Fund
6
TOTALS, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Total Appropriationsd 14,685
FY2008
Request
FY2008
House
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
270
270
270
270
105
105
105
105
1,068
1,068
1,068
1,068
2,094
2,082
2,084
2,067
490
504
498
486
313
313
340
334
574
576
560
544
19
28
28
27
1,522
14
228
319
2,083
12
1,649
73
228
279
2,229
0
1,660
83
231
310
2,284
0
1,611
81
228
285
2,205
0
13,936
14,815
14,906
14,664
Current Year Funding
12,154
11,411
12,290
12,381
12,139
One-Year Advance Funding
2,531
2,525
2,525
2,525
2,525
Source: Amounts are based on the Dec. 17, 2007, table from House Appropriations Committee,
reflecting the explanatory statement on Division G of H.R. 2764, Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2008, printed in Congressional Record, Dec. 17, 2007, Book II. Details may not add to totals due to
rounding.
a. The WIA community college initiative (i.e., Community-Based Job Training program) was funded
at $125 million in FY2007 from Dislocated Worker Assistance National Reserve funds. The
President’s budget request for FY2008 would have provided direct appropriations of $150
million. To reflect this difference, in Table 8 the program is shown on two lines.
b. Federal Unemployment Benefits and Allowances consist of funding for benefits and training for
workers under the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program.
c. The FY2006 appropriations bill directed DOL to transfer the Job Corps from ETA to the Office
of the Secretary. The Administration’s budget request for FY2008 sought to return the Job
Corps to ETA. P.L. 110-161 kept the Job Corps in the Office of the Secretary. In Table 8, the
Job Corps is included in DOL Departmental Management.
d. Appropriations totals include discretionary and mandatory spending and may be subject to
additional scorekeeping and other adjustments.
CRS-27
Department of Health and Human Services
FY2007 discretionary appropriations for the Department of Health and Human
Services (HHS) were $64.1 billion. For FY2008, the budget request was $63.2
billion, $859 million (1.3%) less than the FY2007 amount, as shown in Table 9. The
FY2008 House appropriations bill would have provided $68.4 billion in discretionary
funding, an increase of $4.31 billion (6.7%) over FY2007. The Senate bill would
have provided $68.1 billion, $4.09 billion (6.4%) over the FY2007 level. The
appropriation enacted in P.L. 110-161 was $65.6 billion, an increase of $1.50 billion
(2.3%) over FY2007.
Table 9. Department of Health and Human Services
Discretionary Appropriations
($ in billions)
Funding
Appropriations
FY2007
Enacted
FY2008
Request
FY2008
House
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
64.1
63.2
68.4
68.1
65.6
Source: Amounts are based on the Dec. 17, 2007, table from House Appropriations Committee,
reflecting the explanatory statement on Division G of H.R. 2764, Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2008, printed in Congressional Record, Dec. 17, 2007, Book II. Amounts represent discretionary
spending funded by L-HHS-ED appropriations; funds for mandatory programs are excluded, as are
funds for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Indian Health Service (IHS). FDA and
IHS are both agencies of HHS, but they are funded through other appropriations bills.
Mandatory HHS programs included in the L-HHS-ED act were funded at $410.7
billion in FY2008, and consist primarily of Medicaid Grants to States ($208.7
billion), Payments to Medicare Trust Funds ($188.4 billion, including both Part B
Supplementary Medical Insurance and Part D Prescription Drugs), Foster Care and
Adoption Assistance State Payments ($6.8 billion), Family Support Payments to
States ($4.0 billion), and the Social Services Block Grant ($1.7 billion).
Key Issues
President’s Request. The President’s FY2008 budget request for HHS
proposed increased support for the Public Health and Social Services Emergency
Fund (PHSSEF), and for program management and a fraud control initiative for the
administration of Medicare and Medicaid. At the same time, it proposed overall
funding reductions for health resources and services, disease control and prevention,
medical research, substance abuse and prevention, programs for children and
families, and services for the aging. Not all programs in each category were
decreased; selected programs in most of the categories were requested for increases.
Requests for major changes are indicated below.
Discretionary spending changes of at least $100 million were requested in the
President’s FY2008 budget for several HHS programs, as follows.
CRS-28
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Health Professions programs other than those for nursing, funded at
$185 million in FY2007, would have been decreased by $175
million to $10 million.
Children’s Hospitals Graduate Medical Education (CHGME),
funded at $297 million in FY2007, would have been reduced by
$187 million to $110 million.
Rural Health Programs, funded at $129 million in FY2007, would
have been reduced by $104 million to $25 million.
Buildings and Facilities at the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC), funded at $134 million in FY2007, would have
been reduced by $114 million to $20 million.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH), funded at $28.90 billion in
FY2007, would have been reduced by $279 million to $28.62
billion.
At the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
(SAMHSA), the Mental Health Block Grant (MHBG) and the
Substance Abuse Block Grant (SABG) were proposed for level
funding ($407 million and $1.68 billion, respectively), but all other
SAMHSA activities would have been reduced, in the aggregate, by
$160 million, from $1.12 billion in FY2007 to $960 million.
At the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), a Fraud
and Abuse Control Initiative would have been funded at $183
million, while CMS Program Management would have been
increased by $133 million, from $3.14 billion in FY2007 to $3.27
billion.
The Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP),
funded at $2.16 billion in FY2007, would have been decreased by
$379 million to $1.78 billion.
The Social Services Block Grant, funded at $1.7 billion in FY2007,
would have been reduced by $500 million to $1.2 billion, but only
if a legislative change proposed by the Administration had been
adopted by Congress. (Under current law, the request remained at
$1.7 billion.)
Head Start, funded at $6.89 billion in FY2007, would have been
decreased by $100 million to $6.79 billion.
The Community Services Block Grant (CSBG), funded at $630
million in FY2007, would have been eliminated.
The PHSSEF, funded at $717 million in FY2007, would have been
increased by $1.04 billion to $1.75 billion. Funding covers
homeland security activities and pandemic influenza preparedness,
both of which would have been increased. (For details on pandemic
influenza appropriations, see CRS Report RS22576.)
House Bill. For HHS programs, the House bill differed by at least $100
million from the President’s budget request, as follows.
!
The Health Centers program would have received $2.19 billion
under the House bill, $200 million more than requested; $1.99
billion was provided in FY2007.
CRS-29
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Health Professions other than nursing would have received $228
million, $219 million more than requested; $185 million was
provided in FY2007.
CHGME would have received $307 million, $197 million more than
requested; $297 million was provided in FY2007.
Rural Health Programs would have received $145 million, $120
million more than requested; $129 million was provided in FY2007.
The House bill moved funding for the Denali Commission out of the
Rural Health category; it received $39 million in FY2007, but was
given no funding in the request or the House bill. (The Senate bill
would have retained the Commission in Rural Health at $39 million;
P.L. 110-161 gave it $39 million outside of Rural Health Programs.)
Health Care-Related Facilities and Activities would have received
$128 million; no funds were requested and none were provided in
FY2007.
The CDC Infectious Diseases program would have received $1.90
billion, $119 million more than requested; $1.79 billion was
provided in FY2007.
The Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant (PHBG)
would have received $109 million. No funds were requested; $99
million was provided in FY2007.
NIH would have received $29.67 billion, $1.05 billion more than
requested; $28.90 billion was provided in FY2007.
SAMHSA activities other than the two block grants would have
received $1.14 billion, $179 million more than requested; $1.12
billion was provided in FY2007.
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) would
have received an appropriation of $283 million; previously, all of its
funding had come indirectly from the PHS Evaluation Tap. The
House bill would have provided an additional $47 million from the
PHS tap, for a total of $330 million, the same as the request; AHRQ
received $319 million from the tap in FY2007.
The CMS Fraud and Abuse Control Initiative would have received
$383 million, $200 million more than requested; there was no
funding in FY2007.
LIHEAP would have received $2.66 billion, $880 million more than
requested; $2.16 billion was provided in FY2007.
Head Start would have received $6.96 billion, $175 million more
than requested; $6.89 billion was provided in FY2007.
The CSBG would have been funded at $660 million. No funds were
requested; $630 million was provided in FY2007.
Senate Bill. The Senate bill differed from the House bill by at least $100
million for several HHS programs.
!
CHGME would have been funded at $200 million, $107 million less
than the House amount of $307 million; $110 million was requested,
and $297 million was provided in FY2007.
CRS-30
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CDC Infectious Diseases would have been funded at $1.76 billion,
$138 million less than the House amount of $1.90 billion; $1.78
billion was requested, and $1.79 billion was provided in FY2007.
Buildings and Facilities at CDC would have been funded at $220
million, $210 million more than the House amount of $10 million;
$20 million was requested, and $134 million was provided in
FY2007.
The NIH would have received $29.90 billion, $230 million more
than the House amount of $29.67 billion; $28.62 billion was
requested, and $28.90 billion was provided in FY2007.
LIHEAP would have been funded at $2.16 billion, $501 million less
than the House amount of $2.66 billion; $1.78 billion was requested,
and $2.16 billion was provided in FY2007.
Head Start would have received $7.09 billion, $125 million more
than the House amount of $6.96 billion; $6.79 billion was requested,
and $6.89 billion was provided in FY2007.
Conference Report (Vetoed). Compared to FY2007 funding, the conference
agreement would have changed discretionary spending by at least $100 million for
several HHS programs.
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Community Health Centers would have received $2.21 billion, $225
million more than requested and $225 million more than the FY2007
amount of $1.99 billion.
Health Care-Related Facilities and Activities would have received
$318 million; no funds were requested for FY2008 or provided in
FY2007.
NIH would have received $30.0 billion, $1.4 billion more than
requested and $1.1 billion more than the FY2007 amount of $28.9
billion.
AHRQ would have received no direct appropriation but would have
received $335 million indirectly from the PHS Evaluation Tap, $5
million more than requested and $16 million more than the FY2007
amount of $319 million from the tap.
CMS Program Management would have received $3.28 billion, $2
million more than requested and $135 million more than the FY2007
amount of $3.14 billion.
The CMS Fraud and Abuse Control Initiative would have received
$383 million, $200 million more than requested; there was no
funding in FY2007.
LIHEAP would have been funded at $2.41 billion, $630 million
more than requested and $250 million more than the FY2007
amount of $2.16 billion.
Head Start would have received $7.04 billion, $254 million more
than requested and $154 million more than the FY2007 amount of
$6.89 billion.
The PHSSEF would have received $1.51 billion, $248 million less
than requested and $788 million more than the FY2007 amount of
$717 million. Included in the conference amount would have been
CRS-31
$764 million for pandemic influenza preparedness; in FY2007,
pandemic flu activities were funded elsewhere.
Public Law. Compared to FY2007 funding, P.L. 110-161 changed
discretionary spending by at least $100 million for several HHS programs.
!
!
!
Health Care-Related Facilities and Activities received $304 million;
no funds were requested for FY2008 or provided in FY2007.
NIH received $29.23 billion, $607 million more than requested and
$329 million more than the FY2007 amount of $28.90 billion.
LIHEAP was funded at $2.57 billion, $788 million more than
requested and $409 million more than the FY2007 amount of $2.16
billion.
Abortion: Funding Restrictions. Annual L-HHS-ED appropriations
regularly contain restrictions that limit — for one year at a time — the circumstances
under which federal funds can be used to pay for abortions. Restrictions on
appropriated funds, popularly referred to as the “Hyde Amendments,” generally apply
to all L-HHS-ED funds. Medicaid is the largest program affected. Given the
perennial volatility of this issue, these provisions may be revisited at any time during
the annual consideration of L-HHS-ED appropriations. From FY1977 to FY1993,
abortions could be funded only when the life of the mother was endangered. The
103rd Congress modified the provisions to permit federal funding of abortions in
cases of rape or incest. The FY1998 L-HHS-ED appropriations, P.L. 105-78,
extended the Hyde provisions to prohibit the use of federal funds to buy managed
care packages that include abortion coverage, except in the cases of rape, incest, or
life endangerment. The FY1999 L-HHS-ED appropriations, P.L. 105-277, continued
the FY1998 Hyde Amendments with two added provisions: (1) a clarification to
ensure that the restrictions apply to all trust fund programs (namely, Medicare), and
(2) an assurance that Medicare + Choice plans cannot require the provision of
abortion services. No changes were made from FY2000 through FY2004.
The FY2005 L-HHS-ED appropriations, P.L. 108-447 (H.Rept. 108-792, p.
1271), added a restriction, popularly referred to as the “Weldon Amendment,” that
prevents federal programs or state or local governments that receive L-HHS-ED
funds from discriminating against health care entities that do not provide or pay for
abortions or abortion services. The FY2006 L-HHS-ED appropriations retained the
Weldon amendment language and the Hyde restrictions. Under the FY2007
continuing resolution (P.L. 110-5), the provisions also applied to FY2007 funds. The
FY2008 appropriations retained the same language; the provisions can be found in
§507 and §508 of P.L. 110-161, Division G. For additional information, please see
CRS Report RL33467, Abortion: Legislative Response, by Jon O. Shimabukuro and
Karen J. Lewis.
Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Funding Restrictions. On August
9, 2001, President Bush announced a decision to use federal funds for research on
human embryonic stem cells for the first time, but limited the funding to “existing
stem cell lines.” Embryonic stem cells have the ability to develop into virtually any
cell in the body, and have the potential to treat medical conditions such as diabetes
and Parkinson’s disease. In response to the President’s announcement, the NIH
CRS-32
developed a registry of 78 embryonic stem cell lines eligible for use in federally
funded research. However, many of these lines were found to be unavailable or
unsuitable for research; only 21 of the 78 eligible stem cell lines are currently
available for general research purposes. Some scientists are concerned about the
quality, longevity, and availability of eligible stem cell lines. Many believe that the
advancement of research requires new stem cell lines, possibly including stem cells
derived from cloned embryos. The use of stem cells, however, raises ethical issues
for some because the embryos are destroyed in order to obtain the cells.
An FY1996 appropriations continuing resolution, P.L. 104-99 (§128), prohibited
NIH funds from being used for the creation of human embryos for research purposes
or for research in which human embryos are destroyed. Since FY1997, annual
appropriations acts have extended the prohibition to all L-HHS-ED funds, with the
NIH as the agency primarily affected. The restriction, originally introduced by
Representative Jay Dickey, has not changed significantly since it was first enacted.
The current provision can be found in §509 of P.L. 110-161, Division G. The
Senate-reported bill (S. 1710) included a new §520 that would have allowed, if
certain ethical requirements were met, amounts appropriated under the act to be used
to conduct human embryonic stem cell research as long as the cells were derived
before June 15, 2007, thus changing the August 2001 policy of the Bush
Administration. The provision was dropped, however, from the substitute bill that
the Senate considered and eventually passed as H.R. 3043. For additional
information, please see CRS Report RL33540, Stem Cell Research: Federal
Research Funding and Oversight, by Judith A. Johnson and Erin D. Williams.
CRS Products
Health
CRS Report RL33467, Abortion: Legislative Response, by Jon O. Shimabukuro and
Karen J. Lewis.
CRS Report RL30731, AIDS Funding for Federal Government Programs:
FY1981-FY2008, by Judith A. Johnson.
CRS Report RS21044, Background and Legal Issues Related to Stem Cell Research,
by Jon O. Shimabukuro.
CRS Report RL34048, Federal Research and Development Funding: FY2008, by
John Sargent et al.
CRS Report RS22438, Health Professions Programs in Title VII and Title VIII of the
Public Health Service (PHS) Act: Appropriations Fact Sheet, by Bernice ReyesAkinbileje.
CRS Report RL31358, Human Cloning, by Judith A. Johnson and Erin D. Williams.
CRS Report RL33880, Older Americans Act: FY2008 Funding, by Angela Napili.
CRS-33
CRS Report RL33695, The National Institutes of Health (NIH): Organization,
Funding, and Congressional Issues, by Pamela W. Smith.
CRS Report RS22576, Pandemic Influenza: Appropriations for Public Health
Preparedness and Response, by Sarah A. Lister.
CRS Report RL34098, Public Health Service (PHS) Agencies: Background and
Funding, by Pamela W. Smith et al.
CRS Report RL33279, The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Program, by Judith A.
Johnson and Paulette C. Morgan.
CRS Report RL33540, Stem Cell Research: Federal Research Funding and
Oversight, by Judith A. Johnson and Erin D. Williams.
CRS Report RL33997, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
(SAMHSA): Reauthorization Issues, by Ramya Sundararaman.
Human Services
CRS Report RL30785, The Child Care and Development Block Grant: Background
and Funding, by Melinda Gish.
CRS Report RL34121, Child Welfare: Recent and Proposed Federal Funding, by
Emilie Stoltzfus.
CRS Report RL32872, Community Services Block Grants (CSBG): Funding and
Reauthorization, by Karen Spar.
CRS Report RL30952, Head Start: Background and Issues, by Melinda Gish.
CRS Report RL31865, The Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program
(LIHEAP): Program and Funding, by Libby Perl.
CRS Report 94-953, Social Services Block Grant (Title XX of the Social Security
Act), by Melinda Gish.
Websites
Department of Health and Human Services
[http://www.hhs.gov]
[http://www.hhs.gov/budget/docbudget.htm]
Detailed Appropriations Table
Table 10 shows the appropriations details for offices and major programs of
HHS.
CRS-34
Table 10. Detailed Department of Health and
Human Services Appropriations
($ in millions)
Office or Major Program
FY2007
Enacted
FY2008
Request
FY2008
House
Public Health Service (PHS)
Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
Community Health Centers
1,988
1,988
2,188
National Health Service Corps
126
116
132
Health Professions, Nursing
150
105
166
Health Professions, other
185
10
228
Children’s Hospital Graduate Medical
297
110
307
Education
Maternal and Child Health Block Grant
693
693
750
Autism and Other Developmental
0
0
0
Disordersa
Ryan White AIDS Programs
2,113
2,133
2,216
Rural Health Programsb
129
25
145
Family Planning (Title X)
283
283
311
Health Care-Related Facilities and
0
0
128
Activities
Bioterrorism Hospital Grantsc
0
0
0
Vaccine Injury Compensation Trust
56
58
58
Fund (mandatory)
HRSA, other
435
339
498
HRSA subtotal
6,453
5,860
7,126
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Infectious Diseases
1,774
1,782
1,901
Health Promotion
947
959
1,002
Terrorism Preparedness and Response
1,496
1,504
1,599
Preventive Health and Health Services
99
0
109
Block Grant (PHBG)
CDC Buildings and Facilities
134
20
10
CDC, other
1,488
1,452
1,517
CDC subtotald
5,938
5,717
6,138
National Institutes of Health (NIH)d
28,900
28,621
29,670
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
Mental Health Block Grant
407
407
420
Substance Abuse Block Grant
1,679
1,679
1,714
SAMHSA, other
1,120
960
1,139
SAMHSA subtotal
3,206
3,046
3,273
Agency for Healthcare Research and
0
0
283
Quality (AHRQ)
AHRQ program level (non-add)
319
330
330
PHS subtotal 44,497
43,244
46,489
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)
Medicaid Grants to States (mandatory) 170,729
208,921 208,923
Medicare Trust Funds (mandatory)
176,298
188,628 188,828
CMS Program Management
3,141
3,274
3,230
Fraud and Abuse Control initiative
0
183
383
CMS subtotal 350,168
401,006 401,364
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
2,238
126
170
190
2,065
123
156
194
200
302
673
666
37
36
2,146
133
300
2,142
136
300
191
304
0
0
58
58
467
6,928
439
6,922
1,762
983
1,632
1,792
961
1,497
99
97
220
1,469
6,165
29,900
55
1,648
6,050
29,229
407
1,679
1,192
3,278
400
1,680
1,155
3,234
330
0
330
46,601
335
45,435
208,921
188,828
3,248
383
401,380
208,921
188,445
3,152
0
400,517
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FY2007 FY2008 FY2008
Enacted Request
House
Administration for Children and Families (ACF)
Family Support Payments (mandatory)
4,264
3,950
3,950
Low Income Home Energy Assistance
2,161
1,782
2,662
Program (LIHEAP)
Refugee and Entrant Assistance
588
656
651
Child Care and Development Block
2,062
2,062
2,137
Grant (CCDBG)
Social Services Block Grant (SSBG)
1,700
1,700 e
1,700
(Title XX) (mandatory)
Head Start
6,889
6,789
6,964
Child Welfare Services
287
287
287
Developmental Disabilities
171
171
197
Community Services Block Grant
630
0
660
Battered Women’s Shelters
125
125
135
Abstinence Education
109
137
137
Children and Family Services, other
728
732
768
Promoting Safe and Stable Families
345
345
345
(PSSF) (mandatory)
PSSF (discretionary)
89
89
89
Foster Care and Adoption Assistance
6,722
6,843
6,858
(mandatory)
ACF subtotal 26,869
25,666
27,538
Administration on Aging (AOA)
1,383
1,335
1,417
Office of the Secretary
General Departmental Management
356
393
348
Medical Benefits, Commissioned
371
403
403
Officers (mandatory)
Public Health and Social Services
717
1,754
1,705
Emergency Fund (PHSSEF)
Office of the Secretary, other
177
242
165
Office of the Secretary subtotal
1,621
2,790
2,621
TOTALS, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Total Appropriationsf 424,539
474,042 479,430
Current Year Funding 355,082
402,584 407,972
One-Year Advance Funding 69,456
71,457
71,457
Office or Major Program
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
3,950
3,950
2,161
2,570
654
656
2,067
2,062
1,700
1,700
7,089
287
191
670
127
80
769
6,902
282
180
654
123
109
745
345
345
89
63
6,843
6,843
27,023
1,452
27,184
1,413
404
355
403
403
1,730
729
196
2,732
183
1,670
479,187
407,729
71,457
476,219
404,762
71,457
Source: Amounts are based on the Dec. 17, 2007, table from House Appropriations Committee,
reflecting the explanatory statement on Division G of H.R. 2764, Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2008, printed in Congressional Record, Dec. 17, 2007, Book II. Details may not add to totals due to
rounding.
a. Activities related to autism were formerly funded under the Maternal and Child Health Block Grant
as part of the set-aside for Special Projects of Regional and National Significance. The FY2008
Senate bill and P.L. 110-161 created a separate funding line for the autism-related activities.
b. The Denali Commission, previously funded under Rural Health Programs, is now grouped into the
“HRSA, other” line in this table (see discussion under “House Bill” above).
c. P.L. 110-5 transferred the HRSA bioterrorism grants program to the Office of the HHS Secretary.
d. Two HHS programs also received FY2008 funds from Interior-Environment appropriations — $74
million for CDC and $78 million for NIH; neither amount is included in this table.
e. The $1.7 billion shown reflects the current law entitlement to states for the Social Services Block
Grant. For FY2008, the Administration proposed a reduction of $500 million in the entitlement,
which would bring the requested total to $1.2 billion.
f. Appropriations totals include discretionary and mandatory funds, and may be subject to additional
scorekeeping and other adjustments. Two HHS agencies were funded through other
appropriations in FY2008: the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in Agriculture
appropriations ($1.7 billion), and the Indian Health Service (IHS) in Interior-Environment
appropriations ($3.3 billion); neither agency is included in this table.
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Department of Education
For FY2008, P.L. 110-161 provided $59.4 billion in discretionary funding for
the Department of Education, $2.0 billion (3.4%) over the FY2007 amount of $57.5
billion (Table 11). For FY2008, the budget request was $56.2 billion, $1.2 billion
(2.2%) less than the FY2007 amount. The FY2008 House appropriations bill would
have provided $62.1 billion in discretionary funding, an increase of $4.6 billion
(8.0%) over FY2007. The Senate bill would have provided $60.1 billion, $2.6 billion
(4.6%) over the FY2007 level.
Table 11. Department of Education
Discretionary Appropriations
($ in billions)
Funding
Appropriations
FY2007
Enacted
FY2008
Request
FY2008
House
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
57.5
56.2
62.1
60.1
59.4
Source: Amounts are based on the Dec. 17, 2007, table from House Appropriations Committee,
reflecting the explanatory statement on Division G of H.R. 2764, Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2008, printed in Congressional Record, Dec. 17, 2007, Book II. Amounts represent discretionary
spending funded by L-HHS-ED appropriations; funds for mandatory programs are excluded.
A single mandatory ED program is included in the FY2008 L-HHS-ED bill; the
Vocational Rehabilitation State Grants program was funded at $2.8 billion in
FY2007 and was funded at $2.9 billion for FY2008.
Key Issues
President’s Request. Under the FY2008 budget request, funding for several
programs would have been increased, and five new education programs were
proposed. However, the President’s request would have eliminated funding for 44
existing programs and reduced the total discretionary funding for ED programs in
FY2008.
The President’s FY2008 budget request proposed changes of at least $100
million for ED programs, as follows.
!
!
!
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA)
programs, funded in aggregate at $23.5 billion in FY2007, would
have been increased by $993 million in the President’s FY2008
budget request.
Title I, Part A, Grants to Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) for
Education for the Disadvantaged, funded at $12.8 billion in FY2007,
would have been increased by $1.1 billion.
School Improvement Grants, funded at $125 million in FY2007,
would have been increased by $375 million.
CRS-37
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
Three K-12 education initiatives of at least $100 million were
proposed by the President: $125 million for Math Now, Elementary;
$125 million for Math Now, Middle School; and $250 million for
Promise Scholarships.
Educational Technology State Grants, funded at $272 million in
FY2007, would have been eliminated.
The Fund for the Improvement of Education (FIE), funded at $159
million in FY2007, would have been reduced by $100 million.
The Teacher Incentive Fund, funded at $0.2 million in FY2007,
would have been increased by $199 million.
Safe and Drug-Free Schools State Grants, funded at $347 million in
FY2007, would have been decreased by $247 million.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Part B
Grants to States program, funded at $10.8 billion in FY2007, would
have been decreased by $291 million.
The Perkins Career and Technical Education program, funded at
$1.3 billion in FY2007, would have been decreased by $686 million.
The Pell Grants program, funded at $13.7 billion in FY2007, would
have been reduced by $247 million. The maximum appropriated
award would have been $4,050; $4,310 was the maximum award in
FY2007.
Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, funded at
$771 million in FY2007, would have been eliminated.
House Bill. For ED programs, the House bill, as passed, differed by at least
$100 million from the President’s budget request, as follows.
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
ESEA programs in aggregate would have received $25.5 billion,
$1.0 billion more than requested; $23.5 billion was provided in
FY2007.
Title I, Part A, Grants to LEAs would have received $14.4 billion,
$453 million more than requested; $12.8 billion was provided in
FY2007.
Reading First State Grants would have received $354 million, $665
million less than requested; $1.0 billion was provided in FY2007.
Of the President’s proposed education initiatives of $100 million or
more, no funds would have been provided for Math Now,
Elementary ($125 million requested); Math Now, Middle School
($125 million); or Promise Scholarships ($250 million).
Teacher Quality State Grants would have received $3.2 billion, $400
million more than requested; $2.9 billion was provided in FY2007.
Education Technology State Grants would have received $272
million; no funds were requested; $272 million was provided in
FY2007.
The 21st Century Community Learning Centers would have received
$1.1 billion, $125 million more than requested; $981 million was
provided in FY2007.
The Fund for the Improvement of Education would have received
$205 million, $147 million more than requested; $159 million was
provided in FY2007.
CRS-38
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
The Teacher Incentive Fund would have received $99 million, $100
million less than requested; $0.2 million was provided in FY2007.
Safe and Drug-Free Schools State Grants would have received $347
million, $247 million more than requested; $347 million was
provided in FY2007.
English Language Acquisition State Grants would have received
$775 million, $104 million more than requested; $669 million was
provided in FY2007.
IDEA Part B Grants to States would have received $11.3 billion,
$850 million more than requested; $10.8 billion was provided in
FY2007.
Perkins Career and Technical Education would have received $1.3
billion, $710 million more than requested; $1.3 billion was provided
in FY2007.
Pell Grants would have received $15.6 billion, $2.2 billion more
than requested; $13.7 billion was provided in FY2007. The Pell
Grant maximum appropriated award would have been increased to
$4,700; $4,050 was requested as the appropriated maximum award;
$4,310 was the maximum award in FY2007.
Federal Supplemental Opportunity Grants would have received $771
million; no funds were requested; $771 million was provided in
FY2007.
Aid for Institutional Development for higher education would have
received $648 million; $159 million more than requested; $506
million was provided in FY2007.
Departmental Management would have received $366 million, $227
million less than requested; $560 million was provided in FY2007.
Senate Bill. The Senate bill differed from the House bill by at least $100
million for several ED programs.
!
!
!
!
!
!
ESEA programs in aggregate would have received $24.6 billion,
$926 million less than the House amount of $25.5 billion; $24.5
billion was requested; $23.5 billion was provided in FY2007.
Title I, Part A, Grants to LEAs would have received $13.9 billion,
$453 million less than the House amount of $14.4 billion; $13.9 was
requested; $12.8 billion was provided in FY2007.
Reading First State Grants would have been funded at $800 million,
$447 million more than the House amount of $354 million; the
request was for $1.0 billion; $1.0 billion was provided in FY2007.
Teacher Quality State Grants would have been funded at $2.9
billion, $300 million less than the House amount of $3.2 billion;
$2.8 billion was requested; $2.9 billion was provided in FY2007.
The 21st Century Community Learning Centers would have received
$1.0 billion, $106 million less than the House amount of $1.1
billion; $981 million was requested; $981 million was provided in
FY2007.
IDEA Part B Grants to States would have received $11.2 billion,
$102 million less than the House amount of $11.3 billion; $10.5
billion was requested; $10.8 billion was provided in FY2007.
CRS-39
!
!
!
Pell Grants would have received $14.5 billion, $1.1 billion less than
the House amount of $15.6 billion; $13.4 billion was requested;
$13.7 billion was provided in FY2007. The FY2008 maximum
appropriated award would have been $4,310 under the Senate bill.
The maximum appropriated award would have been $4,700 under
the House bill. The maximum appropriated award would have been
$4,050 under the request. In FY2007, the maximum Pell Grant
award was $4,310.
Aid for Institutional Development for higher education would have
received $507 million, $140 million less than the House amount of
$648 million; $489 million was requested; $506 million was
provided in FY2007.
Departmental Management would have received $569 million, $202
million more than the House amount of $366 million; $594 million
was requested; $560 million was provided in FY2007.
Conference Report (Vetoed). The conference agreement would have
changed discretionary spending by at least $100 million for several ED programs,
compared to the FY2007 funding levels.
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
ESEA programs in aggregate would have received $25.1 billion,
$594 million more than requested, and $1.6 billion more than the
FY2007 amount of $23.5 billion.
Title I, Part A, Grants to LEAs would have received $14.3 billion,
$401 million more than requested, and $1.5 billion more than the
FY2007 amount of $12.8 billion.
School Improvement Grants would have received $500 million, the
same amount requested, and $375 million more than the FY2007
amount of $125 million.
Reading First State Grants would have been funded at $400 million,
$619 million less than requested, and $629 million less than the
FY2007 amount of $1.0 billion.
Teacher Quality State Grants would have been funded at $3.0
billion, $250 million more than requested, and $150 million more
than the FY2007 amount of $2.9 billion.
The 21st Century Community Learning Centers would have received
$1.1 billion, $100 million more than requested, and $100 million
more than the FY2007 amount of $981 million.
The Fund for the Improvement of Education would have been
funded at $263 million, $205 million more than requested, and $104
million more than the FY2007 amount of $159 million.
IDEA Part B Grants to States would have received $11.3 billion,
$800 million more than requested, and $509 million more than the
FY2007 amount of $10.8 billion.
Pell Grants would have received $14.5 billion, $1.1 billion more
than requested, and $837 million more than the FY2007 amount of
$13.7 billion. The FY2008 maximum appropriated grant award
would have been $4,435, $385 more than requested and $125 more
than the FY2007 amount of $4,310.
CRS-40
!
The Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education would
have received $126 million, $104 more than requested, and $104
more than the FY2007 amount of $22 million.
Public Law. The FY2008 enacted appropriations changed discretionary
spending by at least $100 million for several ED programs, compared to the FY2007
funding levels.
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
ESEA programs in aggregate received $24.6 billion, $99 million
more than requested, and $1.1 billion more than the FY2007 amount
of $23.5 billion.
Title I, Part A, Grants to LEAs were funded at $14.0 billion, $118
million more than requested, and $1.2 billion more than the FY2007
amount of $12.8 billion.
School Improvement Grants received $491 million, $9 million less
than requested, and $366 million more than the FY2007 amount of
$125 million.
Reading First State Grants received $393 million, $626 million less
than requested, and $636 million less than the FY2007 amount of
$1.0 billion.
The 21st Century Community Learning Centers were funded at $1.1
billion, $100 million more than requested, and $100 million more
than the FY2007 amount of $981 million.
IDEA Part B Grants to States were funded at $11.0 billion, $550
million more than requested, and $259 million more than the
FY2007 amount of $10.8 billion.
Pell Grants received $14.2 billion, $801 million more than
requested, and $554 million more than the FY2007 amount of $13.7
billion. The FY2008 maximum appropriated grant award was
$4,241, $191 more than requested and $69 less than the FY2007
amount of $4,310.2
New Programs and Program Eliminations. The request included funding
for five new education programs; none of them was funded by the FY2008 enacted
appropriations. The enacted appropriations, however, provided $1 million in funding
for each of two new programs, Programs for Bachelor’s Degrees in Science,
Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and Critical Languages, and
Programs for Master’s Degrees in STEM and Critical Languages.
The request would have eliminated funding for 44 education programs. The
FY2008 enacted appropriations eliminated funding for 2 of the 44 programs — the
Early Childhood Educator Professional Development program, which was funded at
2
The College Cost Reduction Act (P.L. 110-84) provided an additional $2 billion in
mandatory funding for the Pell Grant program in FY2008. These mandatory funds coupled
with the discretionary funds provided through the FY2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act
provide a total maximum Pell Grant award of $4,731, an increase of $421 in the maximum
Pell Grant award. (Joint explanatory statement accompanying the FY2008 Consolidated
Appropriations Act (P.L. 110-161), which appears in the Congressional Record, December
17, 2007, No. 193 — Book II, p. H16268.)
CRS-41
$15 million in FY2007, and the Innovative Education Block Grants, which were
funded at $99 million in FY2007. The FY2008 enacted appropriations also
eliminated funding for the Credit Enhancement for Charter Schools program, which
was funded at $37 million in FY2007. The request would have continued to fund
this program.
ESEA Funding Shortfall? Since the enactment of the No Child Left Behind
Act of 2001 (NCLBA), P.L. 107-110, which amended the ESEA among other
programs, there has been a continuing discussion regarding the appropriations
“promised” and the resulting “shortfall” when the enacted appropriations are
compared to authorization levels. Some would contend that the ESEA authorizations
of appropriations, as amended by NCLBA, represent a funding commitment that was
promised in return for legislative support for the new administrative requirements
placed on state and local educational systems. They would contend that the
authorized levels are needed for implementing the new requirements, and that the
differences between “promised” and actual funding levels represent a shortfall of
billions of dollars. Others would contend that the authorized funding levels represent
no more than appropriations ceilings, and as such are no different from authorizations
for most education programs. That is, when the authorization amount is specified,
it represents only a maximum amount, with the actual funding level to be determined
during the regular annual appropriations process. In the past, education programs
with specified authorization levels generally have been funded at lower levels; few
have been funded at levels equal to or higher than the specified authorization amount.
Five ESEA programs, as amended by NCLBA, have specific authorization
levels for FY2002 through FY2007: Title I, Part A Grants to Local Educational
Agencies (LEAs); 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21CCLC); the
Education Block Grant; School Choice; and the Fund for the Improvement of
Education. For FY2007, the aggregate authorization for these five programs was
$28.9 billion, and the appropriation was $14.4 billion, or $14.5 billion less than the
amount authorized.
All current ESEA program authorizations expired after FY2007. They have
been automatically extended, however, for one additional year under section 422 of
the General Education Provisions Act (GEPA) (20 U.S.C. 1226a, providing for
contingent extension of programs). Therefore, current ESEA programs are
authorized through September 30, 2008. GEPA also specifies that the amount
authorized to be appropriated for a program during the extension shall be the amount
that was authorized to be appropriated for the program during the terminal fiscal year
of the program. Thus, in the case of the five ESEA programs with specific
authorization levels for FY2007, those authorizations remain the same for FY2008.
Therefore, for FY2008, the aggregate authorization for the five programs is $28.9
billion, and the programs were funded at $15.7 billion, or $13.1 billion less than the
amount authorized.
IDEA Funding Shortfall? From 1975 to 2004, the IDEA Special Education
Part B Grants to States program authorized state payments up to a maximum amount
of 40% of the national average per-pupil expenditure (APPE) times the number of
children with disabilities ages 3-21 that each state serves. Appropriations have never
reached the 40% level. In 2004, Congress addressed the funding issue in P.L. 108-
CRS-42
446, which specified authorization ceilings for Part B Grants to States for FY2005
through FY2011. For FY2007, the Part B Grants to States authorization was $16.9
billion, and the appropriation was $10.8 billion, or $6.2 billion less than the
authorized amount. For FY2008, the authorized amount is $19.2 billion, and $11.0
billion was appropriated — $8.2 billion less than the amount authorized. As with
ESEA and NCLBA, some view these differences as funding shortfalls, while others
see the maximum federal share and the specified authorizations as nothing more than
appropriations ceilings. For additional information, please see CRS Report
RL32085, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA): Current Funding
Trends, by Richard N. Apling and Ann Lordeman.
Maintaining Integrity and Ethical Values in the Department of
Education. The FY2008 enacted appropriations added a general provision that
requires the Secretary of Education to implement procedures: (1) to assess whether
an officer or professional employee of ED, a contractor or subcontractor of ED, a
member of a peer review panel of ED, or a consultant or advisor to ED has a
potential financial interest in or “impaired objectivity” toward a product or service
purchased with, guaranteed by, or insured by funds administered by ED or a
contracted entity of ED; and (2) to disclose the existence of any such financial
interest or impaired objectivity. The Inspector General must subsequently report to
the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations regarding the adequacy of the
procedures implemented by the Secretary. Within one year, the Inspector General
must conduct at least one review of these procedures and make any recommendations
for modifying the procedures that are needed to identify and disclose the existence
of such potential financial interests or impaired objectivity.
Forward Funding and Advance Appropriations. Most appropriations
are available for obligation during the federal fiscal year of the appropriations bill.
For example, most FY2008 appropriations will be available for obligation from
October 1, 2007, through September 30, 2008. Several L-HHS-ED programs,
including some of the larger ED programs, have authorization or appropriations
provisions that allow funding flexibility for program years that differ from the federal
fiscal year. For example, many of the elementary and secondary education formula
grant programs receive appropriations that become available for obligation to the
states on July 1 of the same year as the appropriations, and remain available for 15
months through the end of the following fiscal year. That is, FY2008 appropriations
for some programs will become available for obligation to the states on July 1, 2008,
and will remain available until September 30, 2009. This budgetary procedure is
popularly known as “forward” or “multi-year” funding, and is accomplished through
funding provisions in the L-HHS-ED appropriations bill.
Forward funding in the case of elementary and secondary education programs
was designed to allow additional time for school officials to develop budgets in
advance of the beginning of the school year. For Pell Grants for undergraduates,
however, aggregate program costs for individual students applying for postsecondary
educational assistance cannot be known with certainty ahead of time. Appropriations
from one fiscal year primarily support Pell Grants during the following academic
year; that is, the FY2008 appropriations will be used primarily to support grants for
the 2008-2009 academic year. Unlike funding for elementary and secondary
CRS-43
education programs, however, the funds for Pell Grants remain available for
obligation for two full fiscal years.
An advance appropriation occurs when the appropriation is provided for a fiscal
year beyond the fiscal year for which the appropriation was enacted. In the case of
FY2008 appropriations, funds normally would have become available October 1,
2007, under regular funding provisions, but will not become available for some
programs until July 1, 2008, under the forward funding provisions discussed above.
However, if the July 1, 2008 forward funding date for obligation were to be
postponed by three months — until October 1, 2008 — the appropriation would be
reclassified as an advance appropriation since the funds would become available only
in a subsequent fiscal year, FY2009. For example, the FY2008 budget request for
Title I, Part A Grants to LEAs was $13.9 billion. This amount includes not only
forward funding of $6.5 billion (to become available July 1, 2008), but also an
advance appropriation of $7.4 billion (to become available October 1, 2009). Like
forward funding provisions, these advance appropriations are specified through
provisions in the annual appropriations bill.
What is the impact of these changes in funding provisions? At the
appropriations level, there is no difference between forward funded and advance
appropriations except for the period available for obligation. At the program or
service level, relatively little is changed by the three-month delay in the availability
of funds, since most expenditures for a standard school year occur after October 1.
At the scorekeeping level, however, a significant technical difference occurs because
forward funding is counted as part of the current fiscal year, and is therefore fully
included in the current 302(b) allocation for discretionary appropriations. Under
federal budget scorekeeping rules, an advance appropriation is not counted in the
302(b) allocation until the following year. In essence, a three-month change from
forward funding to an advance appropriation for a given program allows a one-time
shift from the current year to the next year in the scoring of discretionary
appropriations. For more information, please see CRS Report RS20441, Advance
Appropriations, Forward Funding, and Advance Funding, by Sandy Streeter.
Potential Problem with the Treatment of Prior Year Advance
Funding. In general, the funding amounts discussed in this report focus on the
funding actually provided in the FY2008 enacted appropriations. Changes made to
prior year advance funding in the enacted appropriations do not affect discretionary
funding provided for each program, as the prior year advance funding was accounted
for in the previous year’s appropriations act (e.g., FY2007 enacted appropriations).
As previously discussed, however, for the purposes of determining compliance with
the 302(b) allocation, prior year advance funding counts toward this allocation for the
current year, as it is funding that is available for the fiscal year to which the allocation
applies. As part of the effort to meet the 302(b) allocation for FY2008, prior year
advance funds for Title I, Part A, Grants to LEAs; Teacher Quality State Grants;
IDEA, Part B Grants to States; and Career and Technical Education State Grants
were reduced by $263 million.3
3
FY2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act (P.L. 110-161), Division G, Section 528(a)(2).
CRS-44
Although the FY2008 enacted appropriations specifically require the across-theboard reduction to be applied to prior year advance funding, in previous years ED has
complied with across-the-board reduction requirements in appropriations acts by
reducing current year or succeeding year advance funding. Reductions have not been
made to prior year advance funding, presumably because these funds have already
been obligated. Based on data published by the Budget Service at ED, the FY2008
reductions to prior year advance funding will be taken from current year or
succeeding year funding — not from prior year advance funding.4 This results in
discrepancies between funding provided for the four aforementioned programs in the
FY2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act, as displayed in the table in the
explanatory statement, and ED’s calculations of funding provided for these four
programs for FY2008. The differences by program are reported below.
!
!
!
!
Title I, Part A, Grants to LEAs: $14.0 billion in the enacted
appropriations versus $13.9 billion based on ED’s calculations, for
a difference of $129 million;
Teacher Quality State Grants: $3.0 billion in the enacted
appropriations versus $2.9 billion based on ED’s calculations, for a
difference of $25 million;
IDEA Part B Grants to States: $11.0 billion in the enacted
appropriations versus $10.9 billion based on ED’s calculations, for
a difference of $95 million; and
Career and Technical Education State Grants: $1.2 billion in the
enacted appropriations and $1.2 billion based on ED’s calculations,
for a difference of $14 million when unrounded dollar amounts are
considered.
This also affects the overall total provided for discretionary appropriations.
Based on the enacted appropriations, overall discretionary appropriations for FY2008
are $59.4 million. Based on ED’s calculations, overall discretionary appropriations
for FY2008 are $59.2 billion.
The FY2008 enacted appropriations included two provisions that could
ultimately alter the level of funding provided for these and other programs. First, the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) was required, within 30 days of
enactment, to submit to the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations a report
specifying the application of the across-the-board reduction to each account. Second,
the Department of Education was also required, within 45 days, to provide an
operating plan that “details at the program, project, and activity level any funding
allocations for fiscal year 2008 that are different than those” specified in the FY2008
Consolidated Appropriations Act, the joint explanatory statement accompanying the
Consolidated Appropriations Act, or the FY2008 budget request.5 It is unclear at this
time how, if at all, those reports may affect the final treatment of reductions to prior
4
The ED, Budget Service table is available at
[http://www.ed.gov/about/overview/budget/budget08/08action.pdf]. Accessed January 21,
2008.
5
FY2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act (P.L. 110-161), Division G, Section 518.
CRS-45
year advance funding for the aforementioned programs or what other changes may
be made to program funding in the FY2008 enacted appropriations.
CRS Products
CRS Report RS20441, Advance Appropriations, Forward Funding, and Advance
Funding, by Sandy Streeter.
CRS Report RL33960, The Elementary and Secondary Education Act, as Amended
by the No Child Left Behind Act: A Primer, by Wayne C. Riddle and Rebecca
R. Skinner.
CRS Report RL31668, Federal Pell Grant Program of the Higher Education Act:
Background and Reauthorization, by Charmaine Mercer.
CRS Report RL32085, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA): Current
Funding Trends, by Richard N. Apling and Ann Lordeman.
CRS Report RL33371, K-12 Education: Implementation Status of the No Child Left
Behind Act of 2001 (P.L. 107-110), by Gail McCallion, Coordinator.
CRS Report RL33749, The No Child Left Behind Act: An Overview of
Reauthorization Issues for the 110th Congress, by Wayne C. Riddle.
CRS Report RL34214, A Primer on the Higher Education Act (HEA), by Charmaine
Mercer and Rebecca R. Skinner.
Websites
Department of Education
[http://www.ed.gov/index.jhtml]
[http://www.ed.gov/about/overview/budget/budget08/index.html]
Detailed Appropriations Table
Table 12 shows the appropriations details for offices and major programs of
ED.
CRS-46
Table 12. Detailed Department of Education Appropriations
($ in millions)
Office or Major Program
Total Elementary and Secondary
Education Act (non-add)a
Education for the Disadvantaged
Title I, Part A Education for the
Disadvantaged, Grants to LEAsb
Even Start
School Improvement Grants
Reading First State Grants
Math Now, Elementary initiative
Math Now, Middle School initiative
Promise Scholarships
America’s Opportunity Scholarships
Migrant State Grants
Education for the Disadvantaged,
other
Education for the Disadvantaged
subtotal
Impact Aid
Impact Aid
School Improvement Programs
Teacher Quality State Grantsc
Mathematics and Science
Partnerships
Innovative Education Block Grant
Educational Technology State
Grants
21st Century Community Learning
Centers
State Assessments
Rural Education
School Improvement, other
School Improvement subtotal
Indian Education
Indian Education
Innovation and Improvement
Charter School Grants
Fund for the Improvement of
Education general funds (FIE)
Teacher Incentive Fundd
Innovation and Improvement, other
Innovation and Improvement
subtotal
FY2007
Enacted
FY2008
Request
FY2008
House
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
23,481
24,474
25,505
24,578
24,573
12,838
13,910
14,363
13,910
14,028
82
125
1,029
0
0
0
0
387
0
500
1,019
125
125
250
50
380
99
500
354
0
0
0
0
394
0
500
800
0
0
0
0
387
66
491
393
0
0
0
0
380
264
330
261
271
260
14,726
16,689
15,970
15,868
15,618
1,228
1,228
1,278
1,248
1,241
2,887
2,787
3,187
2,887
2,960
182
182
198
184
179
99
0
99
0
0
272
0
272
272
267
981
981
1,106
1,000
1,081
408
169
257
5,255
412
169
167
4,698
412
169
250
5,694
416
169
270
5,199
409
172
246
5,314
119
119
124
119
120
215
215
251
215
211
159
58
205
219
254
0
464
199
450
99
437
99
430
97
424
838
922
992
963
986
CRS-47
Office or Major Program
FY2007
Enacted
Safe Schools and Citizenship Education
Safe and Drug-Free Schools State
347
Grants
Safe Schools and Citizenship, other
383
Safe Schools and Citizenship
730
subtotal
English Language Acquisition
English Language Acquisition State
669
Grants
Special Education
10,783
IDEA, Part B, Grants to Statese
Special Education, other
1,020
Special Education subtotal
11,803
Rehabilitation Services and Disability Research
Vocational Rehabilitation State
2,837
Grants (mandatory)
Rehabilitation Services, other
405
Rehabilitation Services subtotal
3,243
Special Institutions for Persons with Disabilities
Special Institutions for Persons
181
With Disabilities
Vocational and Adult Education
Perkins Career and Technical
1,296
Educationf,g
Adult Education
580
Vocational and Adult, other
116
Vocational and Adult Education
1,992
subtotalg
Student Financial Aid
Pell Grants, maximum award (in
4,310
dollars, non-add)
Pell Grants
13,661
Supplemental Educational
771
Opportunity Grants
Federal Work-Study
980
Federal Perkins Loans
65
Leveraging Educational Assistance
65
Partnership (LEAP)
Student Financial Aid subtotal
15,542
FY2008
Request
FY2008
House
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
100
347
300
295
224
414
397
399
324
761
697
693
671
775
671
700
10,492
993
11,485
11,342
1,020
12,363
11,240
1,090
12,330
11,042
1,046
12,088
2,874
2,874
2,874
2,874
347
3,221
406
3,280
413
3,287
403
3,277
181
188
192
195
610
1,319
1,294
1,286
580
0
603
116
578
23
567
102
1,190
2,038
1,895
1,955
4,050
4,700
4,310
4,241
13,414
15,583
14,487
14,215
0
771
771
757
980
0
980
65
980
65
980
64
0
65
65
64
14,394
17,465
16,369
16,081
CRS-48
Office or Major Program
FY2007
Enacted
FY2008
Request
FY2008
House
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
708
708
708
696
489
648
507
501
22
63
82
120
828
303
202
1,845
868
323
282
2,185
858
313
279
2,040
828
303
269
2,022
234
237
237
233
594
535
590
546
594
366
569
552
Student Aid Administration
Student Aid Administration
718
Higher Education
Aid for Institutional Development
506
Fund for the Improvement of
22
Postsecondary Education (FIPSE)
TRIO Programs
828
GEAR UP
303
292
Higher Education, otherg
1,951
Higher Education subtotalg
Howard University
Howard University
237
Institute of Education Sciences
Institute of Education Sciences
517
Departmental Management
Departmental Management
560
h
Department of Education, other
Department of Education, other
1
TOTALS, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Total Appropriationsi
60,310
1
1
1
1
59,099
64,960
62,982
62,318
Current Year Funding
45,276
44,065
47,956
45,965
45,301
One-Year Advance Funding
15,034
15,034
17,004
17,018
17,017
Source: Amounts are based on the Dec. 17, 2007, table from House Appropriations Committee,
reflecting the explanatory statement on Division G of H.R. 2764, Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2008, printed in Congressional Record, Dec. 17, 2007, Book II.
Note: Details may not add to totals due to rounding.
a. The ESEA total reported in this table for the FY2008 enacted appropriations does not match the
ESEA total reported by ED due to the treatment of reductions to prior year advance funding.
Reductions to prior year advance funding do not affect funding provided for ESEA in the
FY2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act. ED, however, took these deductions from current
year funding, rather than from prior year advance funding, which reduces the FY2008 ESEA
total based on ED’s calculations to $24.4 billion. In addition, the totals for ESEA reported in
this table also do not match the ESEA totals reported by ED for FY2007 enacted, the Senate
bill, or FY2008 enacted because the congressional totals appear to have included $2 million for
the Academies for American History program under the Fund for the Improvement of Education
(ESEA, Title V-D). The Academies for American History program is authorized by the
American History and Civics Education Act, not the ESEA. If this funding were excluded from
the congressional ESEA totals, FY2007 enacted appropriations would have provided $23,479
million for ESEA, the Senate bill would have provided $24,576 million for ESEA, and the
FY2008 enacted appropriations would have provided $24,571 million for ESEA (without
accounting for the aforementioned prior year appropriations issue). It appears that neither the
request nor the House bill would have provided funding for the Academies for American History
program.
b. The total reported for Title I, Part A, Grants to LEAs for the FY2008 enacted appropriations does
not match the program total reported by ED due to the treatment of reductions to prior year
advance funding. Reductions to prior year advance funding do not affect funding provided for
this program in the FY2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act. ED, however, took these
deductions from current year funding, rather than from prior year advance funding, which
reduces the FY2008 program total based on ED’s calculations to $13.9 billion.
CRS-49
c. The total reported for Teacher Quality State Grants for the FY2008 enacted appropriations does
not match the program total reported by ED due to the treatment of reductions to prior year
advance funding. Reductions to prior year advance funding do not affect funding provided for
this program in the FY2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act. ED, however, took these
deductions from current year funding, rather than from prior year advance funding, which
reduces the FY2008 program total based on ED’s calculations to $2.9 billion.
d. Funded at $0.2 million in FY2007.
e. The total reported for IDEA Part B Grants to States for the FY2008 enacted appropriations does
not match the program total reported by ED due to the treatment of reductions to prior year
advance funding. Reductions to prior year advance funding do not affect funding provided for
this program in the FY2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act. ED, however, took these
deductions from current year funding, rather than from prior year advance funding, which
reduces the FY2008 program total based on ED’s calculations to $10.9 billion.
f. The total reported for Career and Technical Education State Grants for the FY2008 enacted
appropriations does not match the program total reported by ED due to the treatment of
reductions to prior year advance funding. Reductions to prior year advance funding do not
affect funding provided for this program in the FY2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act. ED,
however, took these deductions from the succeeding fiscal year funding, rather than from prior
year advance funding, which reduces the FY2008 program total based on ED’s calculations by
$14 million.
g. The Tribally Controlled Postsecondary Career and Technical Institutions program was included
under Perkins Career and Technical Education under the FY2008 request and the House bill.
The Senate bill and the FY2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act, however, included funding
for this program under Higher Education. For comparison purposes, funds for this program that
were included in the request and the House bill were moved to the Higher Education account.
Thus, the account totals for Vocational and Adult Education and for Higher Education for the
request and the House bill will not match the totals included in the joint explanatory statement
that accompanied P.L. 110-161.
h. Includes two appropriations: College Housing and Academic Facilities Loans, and Historically
Black Colleges and Universities Capital Financing program.
i. Appropriations totals include discretionary and mandatory funds, and are subject to additional
scorekeeping and other adjustments. In addition, due to differences in the treatment of
reductions to prior year advance funding in the FY2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act and
by ED (see previous discussion), total funding for the Department of Education appropriated
for FY2008 according to ED is $60.1 billion.
CRS-50
Related Agencies
FY2007 discretionary appropriations for L-HHS-ED related agencies were $11.5
billion, as shown in Table 13. For FY2008, the Administration requested $11.3
billion, or $0.2 billion (1.7%) less than the FY2007 amount. The House bill would
have provided $11.9 billion for FY2008, and the Senate bill would have provided
$12.1 billion. P.L. 110-161 provided $12.0 billion, increasing funding for related
agencies by $438 million (3.8%) over FY2007.
Table 13. Related Agencies Discretionary Appropriations
($ in billions)
Funding
Appropriations
FY2007
Enacted
FY2008
Request
FY2008
House
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
11.5
11.3
11.9
12.1
12.0
Source: Amounts are based on the Dec. 17, 2007, table from House Appropriations Committee,
reflecting the explanatory statement on Division G of H.R. 2764, Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2008, printed in Congressional Record, Dec. 17, 2007, Book II. Amounts represent discretionary
spending funded by L-HHS-ED appropriations; funds for mandatory programs are excluded.
Mandatory programs for related agencies included in the L-HHS-ED bill are
funded at $39.0 billion for FY2008, virtually all of it for the Supplemental Security
Income (SSI) program.
Key Issues
President’s Request. The President’s FY2008 budget for related agencies
proposed discretionary spending changes of at least $100 million for the following
agencies:
!
!
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) has been provided
with a two-year advance appropriation in recent years. The
President’s FY2008 budget did not request FY2010 funds for CPB.
The CPB has been funded at $400 million for FY2009 (included in
L-HHS-ED funding for FY2007 under the Revised Continuing
Appropriations Resolution, P.L. 110-5), and $400 million for
FY2008 (enacted in FY2006).
The Administration’s request for FY2008 would have increased
funding for SSA administrative expenses by $301 million to $9.6
billion, up from $9.3 billion for FY2007.
House Bill. For Related Agencies, the House bill differed by at least $100
million from the President’s budget request, as follows.
!
The House bill would have provided CPB with advance funding for
FY2010 of $420 million. The Administration did not request funds
for FY2010.
CRS-51
!
The House bill would have increased funding for SSA
administrative expenses to $9.7 billion, $100 million more than
requested by the Administration, and $401 million more than the
amount appropriated for FY2007.
Senate Bill. The Senate bill differed from the House bill by at least $100
million for SSA administrative expenses.
!
The Senate bill would have increased funding for SSA
administrative expenses to $9.9 billion, $175 million more than the
House bill and $275 million more than requested.
Conference Report (Vetoed). Compared to FY2007 funding, the conference
agreement would have changed discretionary spending by at least $100 million for
SSA administrative expenses.
!
Funding for Social Security Administration (SSA) administrative
expenses would have risen by $576 million to $9.9 billion, from
$9.3 billion for FY2007.
Public Law. Compared to FY2007 funding, P.L. 110-161 changed
discretionary spending by at least $100 million for SSA administrative expenses.
!
Funding for Social Security Administration (SSA) administrative
expenses was increased by $451 million to $9.7 billion, from $9.3
billion for FY2007.
CRS Products
CRS Report RS22168, The Corporation for Public Broadcasting: Federal Funding
Facts and Status, by Glenn J. McLoughlin.
CRS Report RL31320, Federal Aid to Libraries in the Museum and Library Services
Act of 2003, by Gail McCallion.
CRS Report RS22677, Social Security Administration: Administrative Budget
Issues, by Kathleen Romig.
CRS Report RL33544, Social Security Reform: Current Issues and Legislation, by
Dawn Nuschler.
Websites
Note: Not all of the websites for the related agencies of L-HHS-ED appropriations
include FY2008 budget information.
Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled
[http://www.jwod.gov/jwod/index.html]
CRS-52
Corporation for National and Community Service
[http://www.cns.gov]
Corporation for Public Broadcasting
[http://www.cpb.org]
Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service
[http://www.fmcs.gov]
Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Committee
[http://www.fmshrc.gov]
Institute of Museum and Library Services
[http://www.imls.gov]
Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
[http://www.medpac.gov]
National Commission on Libraries and Information Science
[http://www.nclis.gov]
National Council on Disability
[http://www.ncd.gov]
National Labor Relations Board
[http://www.nlrb.gov]
National Mediation Board
[http://www.nmb.gov]
Occupational Health and Safety Review Commission
[http://www.oshrc.gov]
Railroad Retirement Board
[http://www.rrb.gov]
Social Security Administration
[http://www.ssa.gov]
[http://www.ssa.gov/budget]
CRS-53
Detailed Appropriations Table
Table 14 shows the appropriations details for offices and major programs of the
L-HHS-ED related agencies.
Table 14. Detailed Related Agencies Appropriations
($ in millions)
Office or Major Program
FY2007
Enacted
FY2008
Request
Committee for Purchase from People
5
5
Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled
Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS)a
FY2008
House
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
5
5
5
CNCS Domestic Volunteer Service Programs (DVSP)
Volunteers in Service to America
(VISTA)
99
90
95
95
94
National Senior Volunteer Corps
218
204
218
218
214
317
294
313
313
308
DVSP subtotal
CNCS National and Community Service Programs (NCSP)
National Service Trust
118
123
123
118
123
AmeriCorps Grants
265
256
256
276
257
National Civilian Community Corps
27
12
12
32
24
NCSP, other
83
70
66
66
72
493
459
456
491
475
75
75
74
76
74
885
829
843
881
856
CPB, two-year advance for FY2010
(current request) with FY2009
comparable
400
0
420
420
420
CPB advance for FY2009 with
FY2008 comparable (non-add)
400
400
400
400
400
CPB FY2009 rescission (non-add)
0
0
0
0
0
CPB advance for FY2008 with
FY2007 comparable (non-add)
400
400
400
400
393
CPB FY2008 rescission (non-add)
0
(50)
0
0
0
CPB Digitalization Program
30
0
30
30
29
CPB Interconnection
35
0
27
27
26
64
0
56
56
55
Federal Mediation and Conciliation
Service
43
44
44
44
43
Federal Mine Safety and Health
Review Committee
8
8
8
8
8
Institute of Museum and Library
Services (IMLS)
247
271
265
266
264
NCSP subtotal
CNCS, other
CNCS subtotal
Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB)
CPB FY2008 subtotal
CRS-54
FY2007
Enacted
FY2008
Request
FY2008
House
FY2008
Senate
FY2008
Enacted
Medicare Payment Advisory
Commission
12
11
11
11
11
National Commission on Libraries
and Information Science
1
0
0
0.4
0.4
National Council on Disability
3
3
3
3
3
National Labor Relations Board
252
256
257
257
252
National Mediation Board
12
12
13
13
13
Occupational Safety and Health
Review Commission
10
11
11
11
11
193
184
184
185
181
20
28
28
28
28
Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
(mandatory)
42,931
38,728
38,728
38,729
38,728
SSI Administrative Expenses
2,950
2,983
3,021
3,077
3,019
45,881
41,711
41,749
41,806
41,747
Social Security and Medicare
Administrative Expenses
6,345
6,614
6,676
6,795
6,728
Total SSA Administrative Expenses
(non-add)
9,296
9,597
9,697
9,872
9,747
SSA Office of Inspector General
92
95
95
96
92
52,339
48,448
48,548
48,725
48,595
Total Appropriationsc
54,474
50,082
50,670
50,886
50,716
Current Year Funding
37,264
35,282
35,450
35,666
35,496
One-Year Advance Funding
16,810
14,800
14,800
14,800
14,800
Two-Year Advance Funding
400
0
420
420
420
Office or Major Program
Railroad Retirement Board
b
Social Security Administration (SSA)
SSA Payments to Social Security
Trust Fund (mandatory)
SSA SSI subtotal
SSA subtotal
TOTALS, RELATED AGENCIES
Source: Amounts are based on the Dec. 17, 2007, table from House Appropriations Committee,
reflecting the explanatory statement on Division G of H.R. 2764, Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2008, printed in Congressional Record, Dec. 17, 2007, Book II. Details may not add to totals due to
rounding.
a. Through FY2005, CNCS AmeriCorps Grants and other programs under the National and
Community Service Act were funded in the Veterans Affairs-Housing and Urban Development
(VA-HUD) Appropriations Act. All CNCS programs have been funded in L-HHS-ED since
FY2006.
b. The Social S
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