By Conference Staff
December 19, 2011

By a vote of 296 to 121 on December 16, the House approved a final compromise on a Fiscal Year 2012 spending bill that will fund most federal agencies and programs through September 30 of next year. With spending under current law scheduled to run out at midnight on December 16, the Senate was expected to approve the measure and the President was expected to sign the measure into law to avoid a partial government shutdown.

The bipartisan agreement worked out between House and Senate leaders on December 16 provides $915 billion to fund nine of the twelve regular spending bills including Homeland Security, and Labor/Health and Human Services/Education, which provide funds for a number of local priorities. Unfortunately, the final agreement calls for significant cuts in a number of key programs including a $1.35 billion cut in First Responder Grants, a $179.8 million reduction in Workforce Investment programs, and a $ 1.2 billion decrease in the Low Income Home Energy Assistance program. The following is a summary of how some of the key city priorities were affected:

• First Responder Grants – the bill cuts state and local first responder grant programs by 40 percent below last year's level to $1.35 billion. Within this amount, $50 million is reserved for Operation Stonegarden and $231 million for training, exercises, and technical assistance. That leaves $1.068 billion for the primary state and local programs. In a change from previous years, the bill does not allocate funds among the first responder grant programs, instead it provides the Secretary of Homeland Security with the discretion to allocate the funds among the various programs, including the State Homeland Security Grant Program, Urban Area Security Initiative, Public Transport Security Assistance and Railroad Security Assistance, Port Security Grants, Interoperable Emergency Communications Grants, and Metropolitan Medical Response.

• Other State and Local Programs – the bill cuts firefighter assistance grants 16.5 percent to $675 million (split equally between SAFER and Fire Grants) and increases Emergency Management Performance Grants ten percent above last year's level to $350 million.

The bill provides $14.5 billion for the Department of Labor, which is $145.4 million above the FY 2011 level and $251.2 million below the President's request. The increase above FY 2011 is due to a provision that fully funds Job Corps in FY 2012 – but the bill eliminates advance appropriations for Job Corps and directs the Secretary of Labor to submit future budgets for Job Corps without advance appropriations. Absent this provision, the agreement reduces the Department of Labor's budget by $545.6 million below FY 2011 and $942.2 million below the request.

• Employment and Training Administration (ETA) – the ETA is funded at $10.7 billion - $68 million below the FY 2011 funding level and $118.9 million below the President's request.

• Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Grants to States – the program is funded at $2.6 million, which is $179.8 million below FY 2011 funding.

• Veterans Employment and Training – the bill provides a total of $265 million for Veterans Employment and Training Services - $9.3 million above FY 2011 funding and $4 million above the President's budget request.

The conference agreement provides $71.3 billion in discretionary funding for Education, $153 million below last year's level and $9.3 billion below the President's request.

• Title I Grants – Title I Grants to local school districts are funded at $14.5 billion, which is $60 million above FY 2011.

• Pell Grants – the maximum award is maintained at $5,550 ($4,860 through discretionary appropriations and $690 provided through mandatory funds). The bill makes reforms to the program that include: limiting grants per student to a maximum of six years/12 semesters; requiring a high school diploma, GED or completion of a homeschooling program to receive a Pell grant; slightly adjusting the minimum Pell grant; and reducing the income level below which a student will automatically receive the maximum Pell grant from $30,000 to $23,000. These reforms are estimated by the Congressional Budget Office to save more than $11 billion over the next ten years.

• Race to the Top – the bill cuts funding for the Obama Administration's initiative by more than 20 percent, from $698 million to $550 million.

Health and Human Services (HHS) - the conference agreement funds the Department of Health and Human Services at $69.7 billion, nearly $700 million below last year and $3.4 billion below the President's budget request.

• Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) – the bill funds HRSA at a program level of $6.5 billion, which is $41 million below last year's level and $848 million below the budget request. Within this total, Community Health Centers are funded at $1.6 billion – the same as last year's level and Ryan White HIV/AIDS program is funded at $2.33 billion.

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – the legislation includes a program level of $6.1 billion for the CDC – an increase of $38 million above last year's level and $269 million below the President's budget request.

• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA) – the bill funds SAMHSA at a program level of $3.5 billion – $27 million below last year's level and $73 million below the President's budget request. Within this total, the Substance Abuse Block Grant program receives $1.8 billion, an increase of $21 million over last year, and the Mental Health Block Grant receives $461 million, an increase of $41 million over last year.

• Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) block – the LIHEAP program is funded at $3.5 billion–a decrease of $1.2 billion below last year and an increase of $909 million above the President's budget request, and maintains the funding ratio between "cold weather" and "warm weather" states;

• Child Care Development Block Grant and Head Start – the program is funded at $2.3 billion, $60 million above last year's level;

• Head Start – funded at $8 billion, which is $424 million above last year's level, and $714 million for the Community Services Block Grant – an increase of $12 million above last year and $349 million above the President's budget request;

• Abstinence Education – the bill includes $5 million for abstinence education programs. No funding was included for this program last year, nor was it included in the President's budget request; and

• Ban on Syringe/Needle Exchange Program – the bill imposes a ban on funding for needle exchange programs – a provision that had been included in the bill until FY 2010.

The conference agreement funds EPA at $8.4 billion, which is a $233 million reduction below the FY 2011 enacted level and $524 million below the President's request. Overall, funding for EPA has been reduced by $1.8 billion (-18.4 percent) in calendar year 2011.

The conference agreement cuts $14 million (-6 percent) in clean air and climate research programs; $12 million (-9.5 percent) in EPA's regulatory development office; and $14 million (-5 percent) to air regulatory programs. In addition, the bill includes:

• a 33 percent reduction to the EPA Administrator's immediate office;

• a $101 million reduction for the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds;

• a $78 million reduction for EPA operations/administration, which includes $41 million (-5 percent) in cuts to EPA's regulatory programs;

• a $14 million (-6.2 percent) reduction for uncoordinated climate and other air research; and

• the elimination of $4 million in funding that EPA has used to delay the processing of Appalachian mining permits.