FEBP Releases Issue Brief on the Federal Budget Process

Yesterday, the House Committee on Appropriations adopted spending limits, known as 302(b) allocations, for fiscal year 2011 for each of its 12 subcommittees. The 302(b) allocation for the Labor-Health and Human Services-Education subcommittee is $176.4 billion. The 302(b) allocations are the most recent in a string of annual budget actions that mark the start of the appropriations process – under which funding for nearly all federal education programs will be determined. Fiscal year 2011 starts October 1st, 2010 and all appropriations bills are supposed to be completed by this date. The fiscal year 2011 process has, thus far, been more complicated and confusing than usual, and now the stage is set for a contentious appropriations season.

To provide clarity to this process and explain what it means for education funding for fiscal year 2011, the Federal Education Budget Project has released an issue brief titled “Congressional Budget Action for Fiscal Year 2011 and its Impact on Education Funding.” This issue brief explains recent Congressional action to set limits for fiscal year 2011 appropriations and the unique challenges surrounding the upcoming year’s budget.

Typically, Congress puts forward a budget resolution each year that defines a spending and revenue plan for the next five to 10 years for the entire federal budget. The budget resolution and the ensuing budget process itself can have either significant or more subtle and indirect effects on education funding. However, disagreements among Democrats in both Chambers over deficit spending and competing proposals from various coalitions have complicated this year’s budget process – which is normally completed in the spring. As a result, Democratic leaders in Congress have opted not to debate or vote on a fiscal year 2011 budget resolution, marking the fourth time in 10 years that Congress has failed to adopt an annual budget resolution. Instead, the House passed a “deeming resolution” in July as a substitute for a fiscal year 2011 budget resolution. The House’s overall appropriations spending limit for fiscal year 2011 is $1.121 trillion.

Meanwhile, though the full Senate has taken no action to date to set enforceable fiscal year 2011 spending limits, the Senate Appropriations Committee did approve unenforceable spending limits in July as “spending guidelines”. The total appropriations spending limit included in these guidelines is $1.114 trillion including $169.6 billion for the 302(b) for the Senate’s Labor-Health and Human Services-Education Appropriation subcommittee.

The lack of an agreed upon budget resolution in the House and Senate creates uncertainty as Congress enters into the budget process for fiscal year 2011. Moreover, the House’s adopted total appropriations limit is $7 billion above the level the Senate is operating under, and the 302(b) allocations for each Chamber’s Labor-Health and Human Services-Education Appropriation subcommittee are also nearly $7 billion apart. Ultimately, the House and Senate will have to agree on the same number before the bill can become law, of course.

Debate and disagreements among Democrats about the deficit and discretionary spending are far from over, particularly as more moderate coalitions gain political traction. These struggles will likely have significant implications for education funding as Congress begins work on fiscal year 2011 education appropriations.

For a full explanation of these Congressional budget actions and what they mean for the fiscal year 2011 budget process, click here for the complete issue brief.