On April 27th, the House-Senate Budget Conference Committee formally approved the FY10 Concurrent Budget Resolution recommending $51 billion for the FY10 International Affairs Budget.  This funding level represents:

• A $1.2 billion or 2.5 percent increase over total FY09 enacted and projected spending of $49.8 billion;
• An increase of $2.5 billion or 5.1 percent over the House-approved funding level of $48.5 billion;
• A reduction of $2.8 billion or 5.2 percent below the Senate-approved and Administration request level of $53.8 billion.

The budget conference report also recommends $1.086 trillion in total discretionary funding, representing a $10 billion reduction from the Obama Administration’s request level. Nearly 30 percent of the discretionary spending decrease occurred within the International Affairs Budget allocation. The House and Senate are expected to complete consideration of the FY10 Concurrent Budget Resolution this week. Once the FY10 Concurrent Budget Resolution is enacted, Congress will then turn its attention to completing action on the Administration’s $83.4 billion FY09 Emergency Supplemental request, which includes $7.1 billion for the International Affairs Budget, and move forward on mark-up of the FY10 Appropriations bills.