The House Appropriations Committee on Monday began cleaning house, so to speak, by proposing to terminate numerous federal programs deemed "low priority" in hopes of saving billions in annual federal government spending.
"In a reflection of the austere budget climate, the House Appropriations Committee has proposed to terminate scores of low priority programs which will achieve billions of dollars of savings. Program terminations cover programs that were funded in last year’s budget and also new programs proposed in the budget that received no funding in the spending bills," according to a Committee news release.
So far the Committee has recommended that 99 programs be terminated for a savings of more than $4.5 billion.
The Committee also announced that domestic discretionary spending is on track to be below last year levels – something that has not happened since the Reagan Administration. Conversely, mandatory spending carried in the Labor-HHS bill alone will increase by 30%, or $105 billion, over the previous year.
On the proposed chopping block:
Agriculture Appropriations bill
(5 terminations for a savings of $325 million)
Rural Housing Voucher Program: -$214 million
High Energy Cost Grants: -$28 million
Regional, State, and Local Grants: -$75 million.
Higher Education Agrosecurity Program: -$5 million
National Disaster Emergency Loan Subsidy: -$3 million
Defense Appropriations bill
(1 termination for a savings of $148 million)
Joint Air to Surface Standoff Missile: -$148 million (eliminates program)
Energy and Water Appropriations bill
(4 terminations for $138 million)
Denali Commission: -$64 million
Flood Control and Coastal Emergencies: -$70 million
Nuclear Energy Research Initiative: -$2 million
Nuclear Energy Plant Optimization: -$2 million
Foreign Operations Appropriations bill
(4 terminations for a savings of $222 million)
Global Environmental Facility: -$107 million
Operation Enduring Friendship: -$5 million
U.N. International Democracy Fund: -$10 million
Conflict Response Fund: -$100 million
Interior Appropriations bill
(4 terminations for a savings of $120 million)
Jobs in the Woods Program: -$6 million
Land and Water Conservation Fund State Recreation Grants: -$90 million
National Park Service Statutory Aid: -$11 million
Preserve America: -$13 million
Labor-HHS Appropriations bill
(57 terminations for a savings of $2.848 billion)
Responsible Reintegration for Youthful Offenders: -$50 million
DOL-Denali Commission: -$7 million
HRSA-Rural Research: -$9 million
HRSA-State planning grants: -$11 million
HRSA-Sickle cell demo: -$.2 million
HRSA-Trauma Care: -$3 million
HRSA-Rural EMS: -$1 million
HRSA-Denali Commission: -$40 million
HRSA-Health Community Access: -$83 million
HRSA- Health Administration: -$1 million
HRSA-Minority HCOP: -36 million
HRSA-Minority faculty loans: -$1 million
HRSA-Primary Care: -$89 million
HRSA-Area Health Education Centers: -$29 million
HRSA-Health Education Training Centers: -$4 million
HRSA-Allied health: -$12 million
HRSA-Geriatric education: -$32 million
HRSA-Burdick rural training: -$6 million
HRSA-Health professional workforce analysis: -$1 million
HRSA-Public health/dental training: -$9 million
LIHEAP emergency fund: -$298 million
National Youth Sports: -$18 million
Community Food and Nutrition: -$7 million
Early Learning Fund: -$36 million
Alcohol Abuse Reduction: -$33million
Arts in Education: -$36 million
Community Technology Centers: -$5 million
Demonstration Higher Education Disabilities Projects: -$7 million
Dropout Prevention Programs: -$5 million
Excellence in Economic Education: -$2 million
Exchanges with Historic Whaling and Trading Partners: -$9 million
Foreign Language Assistance: -$18 million
Javits Gifted and Talented Education: -$11 million
Literacy Programs for Prisoners: -$5 million
Mental Health Integration in Schools: -$5 million
Occupational and Employments Information: $-9 million
Parental Information and Resource Centers: -$42 million
Ready to Learn TV: -$23 million
Ready to Teach: -$14 million
Star Schools: -$21 million
State Grant for Incarcerated Youth Offenders: -$22 million
Tech-Prep Demonstration: -$5 million
Thurgood Marshall Legal Educational Opportunity Program: -$3 million
Underground Railroad: -$2 million
Byrd Scholarships: -$41 million
Interest Subsidy Grants: -$2 million
Women’s Education Equity: -$3 million
Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control: -$80 million
Maternity Group Homes: -$10 million
IT Security and Innovation Fund: -$15 million
Special Education-Vocational Rehabilitation Transition Initiative: -$5 million
Enhanced Pell Grants for State scholars: -$33 million
Loans for Short Term Training: -$11 million
Volunteers in Homeland Security: -$5 million
High School Intervention: -$1.24 billion
High School Assessments: -$125 million
Community College Access: -$125 million
Legislative Branch Appropriations bill
(2 terminations for a savings of $7 million)
Capitol Hill Police Mounted Horse Unit: -$.2 million
Truck Interdiction program: -$7 million
Science State Justice Appropriations bill
(14 terminations for a savings of $382 million)
Advanced Technology Program: -$136 million
COPS Hiring Grants: -$10 million
Small Business Investment Company Participating Securities
PRIME Technical Assistance: -$5 million
U.S. Travel and Tourism Promotion: -$10 million
Radiation Exposure Compensation Act: -$27 million
COPS Coverdell Forensics Science: -$15 million
COPS Crime Identification Technology: -$28 million
COPS Safe Schools Initiative: -$4 million
COPS Police Integrity Grants: -$7 million
Police Corps: -$15 million
International Center for Middle Eastern-Western dialogue: -$7 million
Public Telecommunications Facilities, Planning, and Construction (PTFP): -$ 19 million
U.S. Institute of Peace New Facility funding: -$99M
Transportation-Treasury Appropriations bill
(9 terminations for a savings of $360 million)
National Defense Tank Vessel Construction Program: -$74 million
HOPE VI housing program: -$143 million
Empowerment Zones/Enterprise Communities: -$10 million
Community Development Loan Guarantees Program: -$6 million
National Housing Development Corp: $5 million
La Raza earmark: -$5 million
Neighborhood Initiative: -$42 million
Prisoner Re-entry program: -$25 million
Lead Abatement Demonstration Program: -$50 million
