Congress Kickstarts 2013 Appropriations Process, but Is Still Far from Completion

Congress made some first moves last week toward approving a budget for fiscal year 2013, but it is still far from certain that legislators will even pass a budget this year or at least before the November elections. Both the House and Senate Appropriations Committees have now released their overall funding targets for fiscal year 2013, as well as appropriations subcommittee allocations.

The Senate’s overall spending limit is $19.0 billion more than the House’s, and its allocation to the Labor-Health and Human Services (HHS)-Education Appropriations Subcommittee, which encompasses early learning and education programs, was $7.7 billion higher than the House’s. While the Senate allocated $157.7 billion to the Labor-HHS-Education Subcommittee (a $3 million decrease from the current fiscal year), the House increased its allocation from $139.2 billion in fiscal year 2012 to $150.0 billion next year.

Congress has a long way to go before passing a budget, if it does so at all. We at Early Ed Watch will be following closely to see whether Congress devotes its limited resources to young children. Our sister blog, Ed Money Watch, has all the details here.

For a roundup of recent federal budget news focused on early education, see our budget page.