The President’s FY11 Budget request includes $7.2 billion for security assistance, which includes funding for five accounts: Foreign Military Financing (FMF), International Military Education and Training (IMET), Nonproliferation, Anti-Terrorism, Deming and Related Programs (NADR), Non-UN Peacekeeping Operations, and the Pakistan Counterinsurgency Capability Fund (PCCF). 

In her opening statement, Chairwoman Lowey said she was pleased the budget request will “reestablish the lines of responsibility at the State Department” over programs such as the PCCF, which has been led by the Pentagon to date. Assistant Secretary Shapiro echoed the Chairwoman’s remarks, saying, “A strong partnership between the State Department and the Department of Defense is critical to addressing the serious international challenges that the United States faces today.” He  iterated that the State Department was working very closely with the Defense Department to transition the PCCF to State. 

Members of the subcommittee in attendance asked questions focused on improving efforts to stop arms smuggling from Egypt into Israel and concerns about recent reports of Syrian arms shipments into Lebanon. Rep. Kirk voiced strong opposition to the Administration’s request for $212 million for the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), stating that he believes the agency has been a failure in its efforts to prevent arms smuggling into the region. Rep. McCollum voiced concerns about the imposition of sharia law in parts of Afghanistan and the negative impact this could have on women and girls.

In his testimony before the subcommittee, Mr. Yohannes expressed his appreciation for the Committee’s support of the MCC’s mission to reduce poverty, noting “I hope you share my belief that smart aid like the aid MCC provides is one of the best investments the United States can make in the prosperity and security of our country and the world.” He stated that the MCC plans to allocate the bulk of the $1.28 billion FY11 budget request for new compacts with Indonesia and Zambia and a second compact with Cape Verde. 

During the hearing, Members of the Subcommittee responded positively to Mr. Yohannes’s testimony and expressed their appreciation for his unique background in working in both the public and private sectors. However, both Chairwoman Lowey (D-NY) and Ranking Member Granger (R-TX) raised concerns over corruption. They asked several questions about how the MCC screens for corruption when picking new compact and threshold countries, and what mechanisms are in place to prevent corruption once the MCC is working in a specific country. Mr. Yohannes assured them that there is an intense screening process in place to prevent corruption and that each of the countries currently involved with the MCC passed this screening process. 

Members attending, in addition to Reps. Lowey and Granger, were Reps. Israel (D-NY), Lee (D-CA), Rehberg (R-MT), and Schiff (D-CA).  Rep. Schiff asked Mr. Yohannes about the rise in emphasis on development and diplomacy in both the QDDR and the PSD, and how that connects with the MCC’s work. Mr. Yohannes responded that the results of both the QDDR and the PSD will hopefully come out sometime this year, saying, “I am waiting, like you, to see the final results.”

• $1.49 billion for the State Department and USAID;
• $220 million for international assistance programs at the Treasury Department, including $212 million to cancel some of Haiti’s debt;
• $150 million for emergency food aid to Haiti; and
• $5.2 million for the Broadcasting Board of Governors’ Voice of America Creole program.

In a joint appearance before the Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday, Secretary Clinton and Secretary Gates testified in support of the Administration’s $33 billion FY10 supplemental request. In her opening statement, Secretary Clinton stated, “the challenges we face demand that we draw on all of the tools of American leadership and American power, and the strategies we now have in place in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq do exactly that.” In his testimony before the committee, Secretary Gates spoke about the importance of the joint civilian-military effort in the frontlines states, noting “Our joint testimony today reflects the close cooperation of our two departments…At the outset, I would like to offer my strong support for the important programs funded in the State portion of the supplemental request, without which our military efforts will not be successful.”

USGLC National Security Advisory Council (NSAC) Co-Chairs General Michael Hagee, USMC (Ret.) and Admiral James Loy, USCG (Ret.) led a group of a retired four- and three-star generals and flag officers in meetings Tuesday with senior House and Senate Members of the Budget and Appropriations Committees and Pentagon officials to talk about the critical role of development and diplomacy and the International Affairs Budget in our national security. This “NSAC Washington Day” comes after over 50 retired military leaders signed a letter calling on Congress to fully fund President Obama’s $58.5 billion International Affairs Budget request. NSAC Washington Day received coverage in Roll Call, Foreign Policy, and an op-ed penned by General Hagee and Admiral Loy ran in the Daily Caller.

Forty-eight retired four-and three-star generals and admirals from all five branches of the Armed Services who are members of the USGLC’s National Security Advisory Council (NSAC) issued a letter on Wednesday, March 10th, expressing their support for increased investments in America’s non-military tools of diplomacy and development. The letter, led by NSAC Co-Chairs General Michael Hagee, USMC (Ret.) and Admiral James Loy, USCG (Ret.), specifically urges Congress to support the President’s $58.5 billion FY11 International Affairs Budget request. The letter comes on the heels of Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mullen remarks calling for increased resources for civilian capabilities at the State Department and USAID.

In his opening statement, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Berman (D-CA) noted “the entire International Affairs budget accounts for just over 1 percent of federal spending.  And only about a third of that one percent is allocated to development and humanitarian programs….With this in mind the increases for fiscal year 2011 are quite modest and, I think, extremely well-justified.” Ranking Member Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) once again reiterated her concerns about funding levels, noting that “although our aid programs are not a major part of our budget, we need to find places to slow down or freeze funding.” Similar to their statements during Secretary Clinton’s testimony last week, both Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) and Ranking Member Kay Granger (R-TX) of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations spoke about the difficult fiscal and economic environment facing Congress while reiterating their support for USAID.

Excerpts from USAID Administrator Dr. Rajiv Shah on the FY11 International Affairs Budget

Throughout the hearings, both Democrats and Republicans expressed support for the International Affairs Budget. However, a number of Members also spoke frankly about the very difficult budget environment facing Congress this year, and the challenges this poses for fully funding the FY11 International Affairs Budget. In both their opening statements, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-MA) and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman (D-CA) emphasized the Administration’s request was only a 2.8% increase above FY10 spending, including the pending $4.5 billion supplemental request and “forward funding” from the FY09 supplemental.

Excerpts from Senate & House Committee Hearings on the FY11 International Affairs Budget

As part of the national security budget, the Administration requested $58.5 billion for the International Affairs Budget representing a $6.1 billion or 11.6% increase over total FY10 enacted International Affairs spending. The growth is concentrated heavily on Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq, in line with the Administration’s revised military strategy and additional troops in Afghanistan.  In fact, nearly 60% of the increase for this account goes to what the State Department is calling the “Frontline States,” leaving a modest growth of $2.5 billion for all other International Affairs programs.  

In addition to the FY11 Budget request, the President also submitted an FY10 supplemental request for the war of $41 billion, which includes $4.5 billion for International Affairs spending for Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq.  The FY 2011 International Affairs Budget would be 2.8% above FY 2010 amounts including the supplemental. 

The entire increase for the International Affairs Budget represents a mere 0.16% of the overall FY11 Budget request. Putting this in perspective:

• The entire International Affairs Budget is a mere 1.4% of the total FY2011 Budget.
• The International Affairs Budget represents only 6.7% of the budget for ‘security agencies’, which includes defense, homeland security, and veteran’s appropriations.
• Even at this level of funding, the International Affairs Budget represents only 0.36% of GDP.

Read the entire USGLC Analysis on the FY11 International Affairs Budget

Last year, under the direction of House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman (D-CA), the House passed a similar bill (H.R. 2410). Should a final bill make it out of the Senate, it would be the first time since 2002 Congress has passed a State Department authorization bill. 

In expressing their support for America’s diplomatic and development programs, Chairman Kerry stated, “If the first decade of the twenty-first century taught us anything about national security, it is that we require more than a strong military to meet our global challenges – diplomacy is an essential element of our national power.” Ranking Member Lugar noted, “Whether protecting our nation by combating terrorism, helping American companies find new markets overseas, or assisting American citizens during natural disasters, these men and women help make our country stronger and safer.”

In a press release, both Kerry and Lugar outlined the key components of the State Authorization bill. Highlights include:

• Authorizing vital programs in support of the Foreign Service, both at State and USAID;
• Strengthening the Offices of Inspector General at both State and USAID;
• Improving the State Department’s public diplomacy mission; and
• Allowing the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) to develop concurrent and subsequent compacts.

The Consolidated Appropriations bill includes $49 billion of the FY10 International Affairs Budget, roughly mid-way between the House-passed and Senate Appropriations Committee bills in July 2009. The largest component – $48.6 billion or 95 percent of the International Affairs Budget – is the FY10 State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs Appropriations bill. The other component – $1.9 billion for international food assistance – was approved by Congress in October in the Agriculture Appropriations bill. The total $50.9 billion FY10 International Affairs Budget is:

• $3 billion or 5.5 percent less than the Administration’s request;
• $2.2 billion or 4.1 percent less than FY09 (but a 3.3% increase when adjusted for FY10 forward funding, as noted above); and
• $7.7 billion or 17.8 percent higher than FY08.

Passage of the Consolidated Appropriation bill comes as the Administration finalizes its FY 2011 Budget request, which will be submitted to Congress on February 1, 2010, in what is widely expected to be a very difficult and constrained resource environment.

Read the full Update

Summary of the FY10 State, Foreign Ops Bill

The FY10 State, Foreign Ops bill is $1.2 billion or 2.4 percent below current spending, including all supplemental funding, and $3.2 billion or 6.2 percent below the President’s request. The bill includes funding to increase personnel by up to 700 new State Department Foreign Services Officers (FSOs) and 300 USAID FSOs, aid to Afghanistan ($2.6 billion), Pakistan ($1.46 billion), and Iraq ($467 million), and funding for several of the President’s new Global Initiatives, including Food Security and Agriculture Development, Basic Education, and Global Health.

Record-Breaking Signatures on FY11 Congressional Letter

This week a record-breaking 247 Members of Congress – a solid majority of 58 Senators and 189 Representatives – delivered their respective letters to the President in support of a robust FY11 International Affairs Budget request. The House and Senate letters send a strong, bipartisan message to the Administration about the importance of continued investments in the smart power tools of development and diplomacy.

The FY11 letters galvanized support in Congress across partisan and ideological spectrums – from Blue Dogs and Freshmen Republicans to the Congressional Black, Hispanic and Progressive Caucuses. In addition, Freshman Representatives Gerry Connolly (D-VA) and Aaron Schock (R-IL) authored an opinion editorial on Monday in Roll Call highlighting their reasons for championing on the letter.