NTU urges all Representatives to vote “NO” on H.R. 4505 and H.R. 4373, legislation funding the Commerce-Justice-Science and State-Foreign Operations appropriations bills for fiscal year (FY) 2022. These bills would increase spending on two of the 12 regular appropriations bills by $16.94 billion, or 13.38 percent, above FY 2021 levels. Along with the $108.42 billion increase in new spending for a related, seven-bill minibus, lawmakers are proposing more than $125 billion in new FY 2022 spending across 10 of the 12 appropriations bills at a time of record deficits and debt. Lawmakers should instead work to reduce discretionary spending, or at least reduce the growth in discretionary spending, in this legislation and in additional appropriations legislation in the months ahead.
While the spending increases in the Commerce-Justice-Science (CJS) and State-Foreign Operations (S-FOPS) bills pale in comparison to the increases in the seven-bill minibus (H.R. 4502), the former two pieces of legislation alone include nearly $17 billion in new spending relative to FY 2021 levels. Given the CJS and S-FOPS bills received more than $4.6 billion in emergency appropriations under the CARES Act and the December 2020 COVID-19 relief bill, it is unclear why an additional $17-billion funding boost -- more than 13 percent above FY 2021 spending levels -- is necessary.
And while NTU has long supported increases in Legislative Branch 302(b) allocations paired with commensurate offsets in one or more of the other 11 appropriations bills, we are concerned about increased proposed appropriations in the Legislative Branch bill (H.R. 4346) given there are no discretionary spending caps starting in FY 2022. NTU believes it’s important for Congress to invest in increasing its own capacity, including efforts to reassert its power over the nation’s purse strings and to exercise robust and effective oversight over any presidential administration and the sprawling federal bureaucracy. However, increases to Legislative Branch appropriations should be met or exceeded by discretionary spending reductions in the other 11 appropriations bills. Instead, Congress is poised to increase spending in all 12 appropriations bills -- a deeply alarming trend with short-term and long-term consequences for the nation’s taxpayers.
We urge lawmakers to support amendments that would reduce spending in these appropriations bills, and to work together in the long run to address record debt and deficit levels.
Roll call votes on H.R. 4505 and H.R. 4373 will be included in NTU’s annual Rating of Congress and a “NO” vote will be considered the pro-taxpayer position. If lawmakers combine H.R. 4505, H.R. 4373, and H.R. 4346 into a minibus package, we would also consider a “NO” vote to be the pro-taxpayer position.
If you have any questions, please contact NTU Director of Federal Policy Andrew Lautz at alautz@ntu.org.