Six months after the beginning of the fiscal year and after several short-term continuing resolutions, Congress has finalized federal appropriations for fiscal year 2024. As a reminder, Congress passed an initial six-bill spending package earlier this month (bill text available HERE) and now has finalized a spending agreement that funds the rest of the government, including the Department of Defense and the majority of the federal government discretionary spending (bill text available HERE), through September 30, 2024.
Below we provide a high-level summary for each of the 12 appropriation bills, including links to the bill reports. If you would like more information on any of these issues, please let us know how we can be most helpful.
DEFENSE: The bill provides $824.3 billion for the Department of Defense, a 3 percent increase of $26.8 billion above the previous fiscal year, for critical national defense efforts. It also includes a 5.2 percent pay raise for U.S. troops and an increase in the allowance for military housing. Other provisions include more funding for the domestic advanced manufacturing base and to counter China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific region.
LABOR/HHS/EDUCATION: The Department of Health and Human Services will receive more than $117 billion, less than a 1% increase from the prior fiscal year. The Department of Labor will receive $13.7 billion, a cut of $37 million. The Department of Education will receive approximately 1 percent less than last year for a total of $79 billion.
HOMELAND SECURITY: The funding bill provides nearly $90 billion for the Department of Homeland Security, including increases in funding for the immigration detention capacity and other border security measures. The bill also includes a slight cut in funding for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), as well as several reporting requirements to Congress on CISA’s processes and strategies.
STATE/FOREIGN OPERATIONS: The legislation cuts foreign assistance by about 6 percent from the previous fiscal year, while sustaining more than $10 billion for international development programs and global health efforts, respectively. The legislation also provides a one-year reauthorization for PEPFAR, the U.S. global AIDS initiative, and provides additional Special Immigration Visa (SIVs) for Afghans who assisted the U.S. government during the war in Afghanistan.
FINANCIAL SERVICES: IRS funding will remain unchanged from the previous year while the other Treasury Department would be funded at $14.2 billion, about the same as fiscal year 2023. The bill also provides funding roughly equivalent to past years’ levels for several independent agencies, including the Federal Trade Commission, the Small Business Administration, and the Federal Communications Commission.
LEGISLATIVE BRANCH: To fund the operations of Congress and the agencies that support it, the package includes $6.8 billion, a more than 2 percent cut from current funding. Of that, $1.9 billion would be used to run the House, a slight increase of $3 million. Another $1.3 billion would fund Senate operations, about a $104 million increase. The Capitol Police would be funded at $792 million, an almost 8 percent uptick from current levels.
AGRICULTURE/RURAL DEVELOPMENT/FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION: The Agriculture Department, Food and Drug Administration, and related agencies would receive $26.2 billion in discretionary funding in fiscal 2024 under the measure, a $383 million increase from the fiscal 2023 enacted level. The measure also includes mandatory funding for nutrition assistance, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and crop insurance programs.
MILITARY CONSTRUCTION/VETERANS AFFAIRS: The Veterans Affairs Department and military construction projects would receive $153.9 billion in discretionary funding for fiscal year 2024, including a $2.3 billion increase for Veteran’s Affairs medical care. The bill continues to bar funding to close the Guantánamo Bay naval station in Cuba.
TRANSPORTATION/HUD: Federal agencies under the Transportation Department and Housing and Urban Development Departments would receive more than $89 billion in discretionary funding for fiscal year 2024, including maintaining funding for the RAISE grant program and increases funding for Homeless Assistance Grants.
ENERGY AND WATER: The Energy Department, Army Corps of Engineers, and related agencies would receive $58.2 billion in discretionary funding for fiscal year 2024, an increase of more than $11 billion from fiscal year 2023. The agreement includes increases for nuclear energy projects and funding for critical mineral extraction and energy storage technologies, as well as $245 million for quantum information sciences.
INTERIOR/ENVIRONMENT: The Environmental Protection Agency, Interior Department, and other land management agencies would receive $38.6 billion in discretionary funding, which is nearly $8 billion less than requested for nondefense resources. The agreement includes $2.8 EPA clean water and drinking water funds, including $1.4 billion in earmarks.
COMMERCE JUSTICE/SCIENCE: The Commerce and Justice Departments and major science programs will receive $66.5 billion in fiscal 2024 discretionary funding under the agreement. The measure provides $10.6 billion for science and technology programs to implement the CHIPS and Science Act to help drive U.S. economic competitiveness and to keep pace with China in areas such as artificial intelligence and quantum computing.
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