FY2022 Omnibus Funding Bill Highlights
March 21, 2022
Categories:
The Insider
Congress passed and President Biden signed into law the 1.5 trillion appropriations package that funds the government through the rest of fiscal 2022 that ends Sept. 30.
The government has been operating under a series of continuing resolutions at the previous year’s funding levels for almost half of the 2022 fiscal year. AFGE applauds Congress and the President for funding our government at the 2022 levels it needs to serve the American people.
A few highlights of the funding package:
1. An increase in both defense and non-defense funding
The appropriations bills provide$730 billion in non-defense funding, a $46 billion increase compared with 2021, or a 6.7% increase – the largest in four years.
The bills include $782 billion in defense funding, a $42 billion increase, or 5.6% more than last year’s.
2. More funding for most agencies
Some highlights include:
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Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) – $112.2 billion, an increase of $7.8 billion above the 2021 enacted level
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Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) – $9.56 billion, a $323 million increase
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Transportation Security Administration (TSA) – $8.49 billion, an increase of $ 176 million
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Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) – $23.9 billion, a $2.19 billion increase
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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) – $409.5 million, a $281.7 million increase
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Coast Guard – $11.5 billion, an increase of $515 million
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Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) – $8.26 billion, an increase of $284.7 million
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Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) – 53.7 billion, an increase of $4 billion
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National Science Foundation (NSF) – $8.84 billion, an increase of $351 million
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Equal Employment Opportunity Commission – $420 million, a $15.5 million increase
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Agricultural Research – $3.5 billion, an increase of $217 million for agriculture research programs, including the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)
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Department of Education (ED) – $76.4 billion, an increase of $2.9 billion
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Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) – $8.1 billion, an increase of $265 million. BOP will get additional correctional officers to improve staffing.
3. Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) through 2027
The bills reauthorized VAWA, which was first enacted in 1994. VAWA enhances protections for abuse survivors and allocates funding for survivor services. It strengthens the health care system’s response to domestic abuse and improves housing access for survivors while also expanding assistance to LGBTQIA+ individuals and communities of color. In addition to addressing the needs of survivors, this bill provides resources for prevention, improves enforcement of court orders, and protects individuals from firearm violence. The bill also has tools that would allow survivors to gain economic independence. The measure provides $575 million to renew the Violence Against Women Act through 2027.
4. Other noted provisions
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Elimination of arbitrary unjustified personnel caps on the civilian workforce in the Defense Department.
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$275 million for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to address asylum processing and citizenship processing backlog.
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Report language to assist Department of Transportation Railroad Safety Inspectors with a salary review and equipment improvements.
