Agencies release budget details
Departments and agencies presented the details of their portions of President Bush's $2.4 trillion fiscal 2005 budget on Monday afternoon. What follows are the highlights of those details presented at departmental budget briefings. AGRICULTURE
Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman released a proposed $81.8 billion agriculture budget of which $61 billion would be mandatory spending on food distribution programs and farm subsidies and $20.8 billion would be for discretionary programs such as food safety, research, conservation and rural development. The $61 billion for mandatory programs includes a 5 percent increase over the fiscal 2004 budget, while the $20.8 billion includes a $720 million decrease. The nutrition budget includes a $2 billion increase in the food stamp program to take care of an expected 1.2 million increase in the number of recipients. The food stamp program has grown from 19.1 million recipients in FY02 to 23.7 million recipients in fiscal 2004. The budget also includes for the first time a $381 million "food and agriculture defense initiative" that would spend $178 million for construction of the National Center for Animal Health facilities in Ames, Iowa, and increased border inspection and programs to protect animals and crops from disease outbreaks. The budget also has, as Veneman announced last week, $60 million program to fight bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or "mad cow" disease. The Food Safety and Inspection Service budget for meat and poultry inspection would rise from $891 million to $952 million, which included $124 million in user fees that many administrations have proposed and Congress has rejected for years.
-- by Jerry Hagstrom
COMMERCE
In its fiscal 2005 request for the Commerce Department, the Bush administration is again taking aim at the Advanced Technology Program and the Manufacturing Extension Partnership; both have been targeted perennially by the White House but have been kept alive through congressional intervention. This year, the White House wants to phase out ATP and to maintain funding for MEP at its current plateau. "The administration believes that other [National Institute of Standards and Technology] research and development programs are much more effective and necessary in supporting the fundamental scientific understanding and technological needs of U.S.-based businesses," the budget stated in requesting elimination of ATP. The administration also contended that large companies not in need of subsidies have benefited from the program. As for MEP, the White House is proposing to keep funding at the same level as fiscal 2004 -- when Congress allocated less than $40 million, down from $106 million in fiscal 2003. Meanwhile, the National Institute of Standards and Technology is a winner in the proposed budget: Its funding would go to $422.9 million, up from $344.4 million in the current fiscal year. Of the request, $31 million would be reserved to equip and operate a new research facility, the Advanced Measurement Laboratory.
-- by Teri Rucker
EDUCATION
President Bush, in his fiscal 2005 budget, requested $57.3 billion in discretionary spending for the Education Department -- an increase of $1.7 billion, or about 3 percent, over the current fiscal year. The proposal would eliminate funding for a number of technology-related programs but would more than double the budget for a math and science program. Bush proposed $269.1 million for the department's math and science partnerships, up $120 million from fiscal 2004. Awards under the program go to state educational agencies, higher education institutions and school districts that partner to develop more rigorous math and science programs. About a half-dozen tech-related education programs, including community technology centers, would be cut completely under the president's plan. The department's budget concluded that the centers, which offer people in economically distressed areas access to computers and training, have had "limited impact" and that funding is available via other federal agencies. Also targeted for elimination is a $106.7 million program for tech-prep education grants to the states. That funding goes to states looking to develop links between secondary institutions and colleges and universities. This program "would no longer be necessary under the administration's reauthorization strategy for career and technical education," according to the budget.
-- by Chloe Albanesius
ENERGY
President Bush's fiscal 2005 budget proposes $24.3 billion for the Energy Department, an increase of nearly 4 percent over fiscal 2004. Energy Secretary Abraham said that would be the largest budget in the department's history and an increase of more than 27 percent since Bush took office three years ago. The budget request includes $227 million for hydrogen efforts, including $95 million for the president's hydrogen fuel initiative. That represents a 13 percent increase over the fiscal 2004 request of $82 million for the program. "This budget reflects a strong commitment by the president and this administration to the fuel cell and FreedomCar program, and the hydrogen program as well," Abraham said. The budget also calls for a 12.5 percent increase in the electricity transmission and distribution program, for a total of nearly $91 million. "The widespread blackout of August 2003 ... was a strong reminder that our nation's electricity grid has vulnerabilities and weaknesses which need to be addressed," Abraham said, adding that Congress should pass an energy bill this year that includes mandatory reliability standards. The energy budget also would "fence off" $749 million annually in fees the federal government collects from utility companies that have nuclear power to finance the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste storage site in Nevada.
-- by Molly M. Peterson
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
The president's fiscal 2005 budget includes $7.76 billion to fund the EPA, a proposed 7.2 percent cut from the agency's fiscal 2004 discretionary funds appropriated by Congress. EPA Administrator Mike Leavitt, who has headed the agency for fewer than 90 days, noted the administration's spending request is actually a $133 million increase over what Bush proposed for EPA in FY04. Leavitt said the proposed spending would help "increase the velocity of environmental protection," characterizing environmental progress of the past 30 years as "too slow, too expensive and too conflict-ridden." Leavitt highlighted the budget increase for cleanup in the Great Lakes and the Chesapeake Bay, as well as an increase in funding -- from $5 million to $65 million -- for the Clean School Bus USA program, which works to reduce emissions by school buses. Additionally, Leavitt said, the budget allocates $4.4 billion, the highest level in EPA history, for operating costs, including enforcement. According to a statement by the Democratic staff of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, Bush's EPA budget reduces clean water infrastructure spending by 37 percent and cuts funding for clean air and global climate change programs by 3 percent. The plan also calls for a 66 percent cut in Homeland Security infrastructure protection. An EPA spokesman said the agency has largely completed its security assessments, and that this funding is no longer needed.
-- by Zach Patton
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
The White House proposed $293 million for the FCC in fiscal 2005, of which $273 million would be offset by regulatory fees, National Journal's Technology Daily reported. The request would increase the agency's funding over the $281 million requested for fiscal 2004. However, Congress appropriated less than the request, giving the agency $274 million in fiscal 2004 with $273 million offset with fees. The budget points out the success of the mobile phone industry, noting that nearly 95 percent of the population has access to at least three mobile phone services. Since the FCC began auctioning spectrum in 1994, $14 billion has been raised and the administration notes that it supports legislation to indefinitely extend the FCC's auction authority, which expires in 2007. The administration also supports allowing the FCC to establish user fees for unlicensed spectrum use, estimating those fees could net $3.1 billion over 10 years.
HOMELAND SECURITY
The Bush administration has proposed a significant $3.7 billion increase in funding to $40.2 billion for the nearly one-year-old Homeland Security Department for fiscal 2005. "[A] raise means we can take additional steps to increase and improve measures that we already have in place -- and add to them additional programs that rely on the most advanced technology to keep us safe," Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said. On border and port security, the budget includes $411 million more than in fiscal 2004 for customs and border patrol, immigration and customs enforcement, and the Coast Guard. For seaport security, the president proposed an additional $25 million over last year's funding for the final phase of a pre-screening cargo initiative. Aviation security would get a 20 percent increase over fiscal 2004, while the Transportation Security Administration would receive $5.3 billion, an increase of $890 million to improve the "quality and efficiency" of the screening process, Ridge said. The budget also recommends another $85 million to continue research on screening technologies. The administration recommended $340 million, or a $12 million increase, for the newly created system to track with biometric data foreign visitors entering and exiting the country. Ridge said the budget also includes $64 million for border surveillance equipment. Penrose (Parney) Albright, assistant secretary at the department's science and technology division, said the funding would be used for unmanned aerial vehicles, among other technologies. Albright also said his division would take the lead on the department's plans to expand the BioWatch program by putting sensors in the top at-risk cities, as well as at stadiums and transit systems, to detect biological pathogens. Additionally, the budget includes $31 million in new funding to develop advanced biological sensors.
-- by Greta Wodele
HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
For fiscal 2005, President Bush has called for $31.3 billion in discretionary spending for HUD -- an increase from the $30.4 billion estimated for fiscal 2004. Assistant Secretary Romolo Bernardi said the president has set a goal to reduce costs, noting that the fiscal 2005 figure is "basically the same level of funding as in fiscal 2004." Officials said the administration is pressing for several improvements so more individuals can obtain housing. One such program would create a zero-down payment mortgage plan that could help up to 150,000 low-income buyers get homes. Under this plan, the buyers would not have to come up with the money for down payments and closing costs up front, but could add those costs to their long-term mortgages.
-- by Spencer Rich
JUSTICE
Funding for the Justice Department under the Bush administration budget would grow to $19.7 billion in fiscal 2005, a 2 percent increase from $19.4 billion in fiscal 2004. Justice officials emphasized the proposal's 19 percent increase in funding directed at preventing terrorist attacks, an 11.4 percent increase for the FBI and 4.5 percent for federal law enforcement programs, National Journal's Technology Daily reported. The total budget request is for $22.1 billion, including mandatory spending. The initiatives devoted to fighting terrorism include $36 million for the Terrorism Threat Integration Center and $29 million for the Terrorist Screening Center. TTIC is an intelligence-analysis initiative of the FBI, CIA and Homeland Security Department based at the CIA. The screening center aims to help the federal government merge terrorist watch lists. Other new programs at the FBI would include: an Office of Intelligence, a $13 million project with 151 positions, including many consolidated from other divisions; $14 million for a counter-terrorism headquarters support program; and $64 million for various national security initiatives. The administration also proposed $25 million in new FBI funding -- including 159 positions, with 61 agents, to "assist the aggressive pursuit of computer-intrusion crime," according to the department. It also proposes $31 million and 29 positions for advanced computer support. Cutting $2.36 billion from a range of programs, together with the additional $325 million sought, would yield $2 billion for new administration priorities. The bulk of the $2 billion in new funding would go to counter terrorism ($371 million), incarceration ($166 million), gun crimes ($96 million) and drug enforcement ($74 million).
-- by Drew Clark
LABOR
The overall Labor Department request for fiscal 2005 is down by $2.7 billion, or about 4.5 percent, with a $2.9 billion cut in mandatory spending from fiscal 2004's request and the discretionary funding request up $251 million. As part of the request, the White House proposed a scaled-back, $50 million pilot program that would provide individual accounts for recipients of unemployment insurance benefits. Those "Personal Re-employment Accounts" would allow beneficiaries to use up to $3,000 for services they think will help them return to work, including child care, transportation and training. The administration proposed a $3.6 billion PRA program last year that was not funded, and Labor Secretary Elaine Chao said the pilot program might help convince lawmakers of its potential by "getting some success stories." The department's funding request also includes $250 million for job training through community colleges and $35 million for a program that helps prisoners return to the workforce in part through grants to "faith-based" service providers. The department also is looking to advance the president's immigration proposal that would establish a temporary guest worker system, seeking to establish a system that would match up employers and foreign workers. The department again is seeking to scale back funding to its international bureau, which promotes labor standards abroad, a move Chao said would help it return to its "core mission" of preventing child labor abuses.
-- by Emily Heil
NASA
The Bush administration's goal of returning to the moon and ultimately exploring Mars was overlooked during the president's State of the Union address last month -- and it received somewhat limited largess in the administration's fiscal 2005 budget plan released today. Overall, NASA fares better than many other agencies outside the realm of defense and homeland security: The White House is asking for a 5.6 percent increase for the agency, or about $900 million over fiscal 2004 levels. But budget documents indicate that, over the next five years, the bulk of the funding for the moon/Mars initiative will come from a reallocation of $11 billion from other NASA programs, as opposed to new money. The budget plan released today includes $1.1 billion for space telescopes -- including the Hubble, which is proposed for a future shutdown. A push is expected on Capitol Hill to keep the Hubble in service.
PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
The fiscal 2005 Bush administration budget proposal for the Patent and Trademark Office would provide $1.53 billion and would let the agency retain all fees associated with its work for the first time in more than a decade. The $1.53 billion total, however, is based upon the presumption that Congress will pass legislation to raise patent fees. The administration supports enactment of that legislation, which also would revamp other aspects of PTO operations. The administration proposed appropriating $1.31 billion for PTO in fiscal 2005, a 13.1 percent increase from the $1.22 billion in fiscal 2004. The administration's proposal to end the diversion of PTO-generated fees to other federal programs marks a departure from previous Bush budgets, as well as those of the Clinton administration.
-- by Drew Clark
TRANSPORTATION
In fiscal 2005, President Bush is proposing to spend $58.7 billion on the Transportation Department, nearly a $1 billion increase over estimated fiscal 2004 spending levels. But despite the increase in the overall budget, several key programs will either see flat funding levels or decreases. For instance, the administration proposes spending $33.3 billion next year on the Federal Highway Administration, a $300 million decrease from fiscal 2004, while the federal transit program will remain flat at $7.2 billion. Similarly, the administration proposes cutting FAA's facilities and equipment budget by 13 percent. And Amtrak funding would decrease from $1.2 billion to $900 million. Areas likely to be targeted in FAA's facilities and equipment budget include the new starts program, some local airport programs and a telecommunications modernization plan, among others. FAA uses that budget to fund safety and security upgrades and repairs at airports.
-- by John Stanton