On June 29, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies approved, by voice vote, the FY2018 Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies spending bill (as-yet-unnumbered).
The measure would provide $54 billion in discretionary funding for FY2018. This amount is $2.6 billion below FY2017, but $4.8 billion over the president’s FY2018 budget request.
The Department of Justice would receive $29 billion in FY2018, $349 million over last year’s allocation. This amount includes $2.2 billion in funding for state and local law enforcement activities, including those within the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW). OVW would receive $527 million in FY2018, $46 million over FY2017. The DNA Initiative Grants program would be level-funded at $125 million; grants to reduce the sexual assault testing kits backlog also would be level-funded at $45 million.
The Marshals Service would receive $2.8 billion, $88 million over FY2017. The Adam Walsh and Missing and Exploited Children grant programs would receive $20 million and $73 million, respectively. These programs include efforts to find, and protect children from, sexual predators.
The legislation would fully fund the $103 million authorized in the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (P.L. 114-198) to address opioid abuse.
While President Trump’s budget request would begin to eliminate funding for the Legal Services Corporation, the subcommittee bill would allocate $300 million in FY2018. This amount is $85 million below FY2017.
Additional details will be made available once the committee releases its report.
