The House of Representatives approved legislation last week that was led by U.S. Rep. Ander Crenshaw (R-FL) to fund federal entities like the IRS, financial regulators, the White House and federal courts.
The fiscal year 2017 Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, H.R. 5485, outlines $21.7 billion in discretionary funding, which would mark a 6.5 percent decrease from the previous year, and 11 percent below the requested amount.
Crenshaw, the chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government, said that the allocation would sufficiently fund critical federal programs and one-time set-aside expenses for the upcoming presidential transition.
“Law enforcement and the administration of justice are among the bill’s priorities,” Crenshaw said. “Funding for the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) and Drug-Free Communities programs are at record-highs, as is funding for Treasury’s Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, which enforces sanctions programs. In addition, there’s a healthy amount of funding for both the Federal and DC judicial branches of government and for the supervision of offenders and defendants living within our communities.”
U.S. Rep. Barbara Comstock (R-VA) introduced an amendment to the appropriations bill that would transfer $7 million from the Government Services Administration to the HIDTA program.
“The heroin and opioid epidemic continues to severely affect our community and others throughout our nation,” Comstock said. “We must utilize every available resource to fight this scourge. The $7 million this amendment transfers to the HIDTA program will be critical in our battle against drug traffickers who prey on some of the most vulnerable in our communities. This increase in resources will also provide support to state and federal prosecutors to convict the individuals associated with dangerous drug trafficking organizations in our area.”
Another priority of the bill, Crenshaw said, is to support small businesses while growing the economy.
“The bill provides $157 million for SBA’s business loan programs to support $28.5 billion in 7(a) lending and $7.5 billion in 504 lending,” Crenshaw said. “The bill also provides record-high amounts of funding for the SBA grant programs in total, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, and Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund program, which includes, for the first time, a set aside for CDFI’s that assist individuals with disabilities to overcome barriers to financial services.”
In order to support funding increases in high-priority areas, the appropriations bill outlines funding cuts for approximately two dozen agencies and programs, including the Office of Management and Budget and the Federal Communications Commission. The bill also calls for a $1.1 billion reduction in construction under the General Services Administration (GSA).
Under the bill, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Office of Financial Research would also be subjected to the normal appropriations process, and the CFPB’s leadership would be changed from one person to a five-member commission.
U.S. Rep. Steve Womack (R-AR) said that the bill countered an aggressive administration and “flawed policies” while maintaining support from the court system and Treasury Department.
“From rolling back regulatory burdens imposed by the Consumer Product Safety Commission to reversing flawed ‘net neutrality’ policies at the Federal Communications Commission and finally bringing the misnamed Consumer Financial Protection Bureau under congressional oversight, this wide-reaching legislation strongly demonstrates a pro-growth and pro-consumer agenda by leading from the front,” Womack said. “This is an outstanding bill that we have worked on for months, and I am happy to see it make its way through this chamber.”