Originally published on the CGS blog on June 13, 2007.
On Tuesday, June 12, the House Appropriations Committee approved the State, Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill for FY 2008, which determines the funding levels for the federal government’s international programs and contributions to international organizations. This bill marks an important signal of the global priorities of the democratically controlled House. The Committee mark of $34.243 billion, which fell short of the President’s request by $700 million, nevertheless represents a nearly $3 billion increase over FY 2007 levels. Much of this increase comes in the area of global health–particularly HIV/AIDS funding, which’saw a $1.25 billion increase, including $550 million for the Global Fund Against AIDS, Tb and Malaria.
Other significant increases over FY 2007 include an additional:
- $167 million for UN Peacekeeping dues
- $70 million for targeted Peacekeeping operations
- $200 million for basic education
The Committee also provided$210.5 million,?a $100 million increase over the president’s request, for humanitarian assistance and peacekeeping in Darfur.
The Millennium Challenge Account was flatlined at $1.8 billion, a $1.2 billion cut from the President’s request. Although not unexpected, this is somewhat disappointing. When it was proposed in 2002, the President said that the MCA would not come at the expense of other development and humanitarian programs, yet each year since then he submitted budgets that cut or flatlined those programs. Congress has for the last 4 years stepped in to make up for that. This has meant that the MCA remains much smaller than it was originally envisioned to be.
Overall, though, this Committee-approved bill signifies a recommitment to reducing global poverty, improving global health, and working multilaterally. The next stage for this bill is the floor debate and vote–most likely before the July 4th recess. The Senate has yet to begin work on its version of the bill.
