This morning the Senate State-Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee approved its FY14 State-Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill by voice vote, with no amendments offered. The $50.6 billion measure – $44.1 billion in base funding and $6.5 billion in Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funds – is roughly flat compared with FY13 post-sequestration funding levels and $1.1 billion (-2%) less than the President’s request.

In contrast to the House bill, which imposes draconian cuts to many accounts (and will be marked up in full Committee tomorrow), the Senate bill fully funds or increases funding for many programs compared to current FY13 funding.  Overall, the Senate bill increases base programs 11% above current sequestered levels.

In releasing the bill summary, Subcommittee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) stated, “Since the end of the Cold War the United States has enjoyed unrivaled dominance, but we cannot take the future for granted as the ambitions and influence of China and other nations rapidly expands. The choices are stark – delude ourselves into believing that our military power is enough and the United Nations, the World Health Organization, and our foreign assistance programs are unimportant or a luxury we cannot afford, or spend a mere one percent of our entire Federal budget to engage with the world. Senator Graham and I choose the latter course, and this bill, which was drafted in a fully bipartisan manner, is our answer.”  Subcommittee Ranking Member Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said, “I know we’re financially challenged, but we cannot withdraw from the world, and our foreign assistance account provides opportunities to help people and create leverage without always having to use military force.”

USGLC issued a statement from USGLC Co-President Bill Lane and National Security Advisory Committee member General Charles Wald, USAF (Ret.) saying that “the Senate has embraced a smart approach to ensure we have the resources to meet the challenges we face around the world, and we urge Congress to support the Senate funding levels as the appropriations process moves forward.”

Bill Highlights

Based on partial details released today by the Senate Appropriations Committee, key highlights of the Senate bill include:

• Full funding, as requested, for Diplomatic Security programs, including amounts necessary to implement the Benghazi Accountability Review Board recommendations.
• “Up to” the President’s $1.5 billion request for Egypt, with the $1.3 billion in military funds available in “tranches” of 25% each, with the first tranche available immediately and the remaining funds subject to certain certifications by the Secretary of State (i.e., holding democratic elections, etc.)
• Substantial reductions to requested diplomacy and aid amounts for the Frontline States due to large existing pipelines of funds and concerns over security and sustainability of programs.  Afghanistan receives $1.9 billion, 40% less than proposed, Iraq gets $1.26 billion, 19% below the request, and Pakistan receives $879 million, more than one-third less than the President’s budget.
• Creation of a new Complex Foreign Crises Fund ($575 million) to support UN peacekeeping in Mali, Syrian refugees in Jordan, and political transitions in the Middle East and North Africa.  The Fund substitutes for the Administration’s proposal for a $580 million Middle East and North Africa Incentive Fund.
• Small reductions, compared to the request, for Development Assistance.  The $2.5 billion Senate recommendation would allow full funding for most of the President’s request for Feed the Future, basic education, water and sanitation, micro credit, environment, and other activities funded under this account.  (The President’s request is adjusted by removing amounts for food aid reform that the Senate addressed in the Agriculture Appropriations.)
• Significant increases in humanitarian assistance.  The Senate measure provides $2.9 billion for refugee relief programs, 60% above the request, and $1.6 billion for International Disaster Assistance, 72% more than the Administration’s proposal after adjusting for food aid that was addressed in the Senate Agriculture spending bill.
• Full funding, as requested, for the Millennium Challenge Corporation ($899 million).
• Full funding, as requested, for investment and export promotion programs managed by the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, the Export-Import Bank, and the Trade and Development Agency.

Sharp Differences between House and Senate on Multilateral Programs

One of the most glaring differences between House and Senate measures comes in funding allocations recommended for a variety of multilateral organizations and aid programs.  Collectively, the Senate bill provides $7.1 billion for U.S. assessed and voluntary contributions to international organizations and UN peacekeeping activities and for commitments made to a host of international financial institutions.  The House measure, by contrast, allocates about half that amount—$3.6 billion.

House and Senate Agreement on Global Health Funding

Global Health is one of the very few areas where the House and Senate measures are relatively consistent, with the exception of family planning.  The House provides $8.175 billion for Global Health while the Senate bill includes slightly more than the President’s request of $8.315 billion.

We will provide a more detailed analysis of the bill when the Committee report becomes available.  The full Appropriations Committee will take up the bill on Thursday, after the House Appropriations Committee takes up its bill tomorrow at 10:00 AM in 2359 Rayburn.