On June 24, the House Appropriations Committee approved, by voice vote, the FY2015 State, Foreign Operations, and Related Services appropriations bill (as-yet-unnumbered). The House Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Services approved the legislation on June 17 (see The Source, 6/20/14).
According to the committee report, the legislation would provide $48.293 billion in discretionary funds for the Department of State, United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and other international organizations. This amount is $707.575 million under FY2014 and $276.538 million under President Obama’s FY2015 request.
The chart below details funding levels for the programs within the bill that are important to women and their families.
| Program/Agency | FY2014 | President’s FY2015 Request | Senate FY2015 | House FY2015 |
| Department of State | ||||
| Diplomatic and Consular Affairs (does not include contingency funds) | $6.606 billion | $6.783 billion | $6.641 billion | $6.74 billion |
| International Peacekeeping | $1.766 billion | $2.519 billion | $2.519 billion | $1.766 billion |
| Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons | $6.521 million | $20.7 million | $6.29 million | $12 million |
| U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) | $1.222 billion | $1.503 billion | $1.355 billion | $1.267 billion |
| Bilateral Economic Assistance | ||||
| Migration and Refugee Assistance | $1.775 billion | $1.582 billion | $1.039 billion | $2.3 billion |
| Global Health and Child Survival (State and USAID) | $8.439 billion | $8.05 billion | $8.139 billion | $8.307 billion |
| President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) | $5.67 billion | $5.37 billion | $5.37 billion | $5.67 billion |
| Child Survival and Maternal Health | $705 million | $695 million | $700 million | $732 million |
| Vulnerable Children | $22 million | $14.5 million | $22 million | $22 million |
| Family Planning/Reproductive Health | $523.95 million | $538 million | $539 million | $461 million |
| Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria | $1.65 billion | $1.395 billion | $1.35 billion | $1.35 billion |
| HIV/AIDS – USAID | $330 million | $330 million | $330 million | $330 million |
| Microbicides | $45 million | $45 million | $45 million | did not specify |
| International Organizations and Programs | ||||
| U.N. Children’s Fund (UNICEF) | $132 million | $116.6 million | $132 million | $132 million |
| U.N. Women (formerly UNIFEM) | $7.5 million | $7.5 million | $7.5 million | did not specify |
| U.N. Population Fund (UNFPA) | $35 million | $35.3 million | $37.5 million | $0 |
The committee directs the ambassador-at-large for Global Women’s Issues at the Department of State, and the senior coordinator for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment at USAID to submit a joint report on the allocation of funds for gender-related programs in FY2014. Additionally, the bill also would require funding for gender-based violence (p.83).
The committee recommends at least $14 million for programs to prevent and treat obstetric fistula (p.36).
The committee recommends at least $365 million for “long-term, sustainable water supply, sanitation, and hygiene products,” which are important for women’s hygiene as well as their safety (p.43).
The committee recommends $800 million for basic education programs, emphasizing the empowerment of women and girls and encourages USAID “to prioritize the special needs of girls’ and women’s literacy and education” in evaluating these programs (p.42).
The committee “supports including women entrepreneurs in science and technology programming,” noting their important role in addressing development challenges (p.83).
The committee expresses particular concern that enforcement of laws restricting religious freedom “are being targeted against women and religious minorities” and “directs the secretary of State and the administrator of USAID to ensure that religious freedom is included in governance programming and activities” (p.77).
The committee expresses support for women’s political participation across the globe. $32 million is recommended for the Near East Regional Democracy program, part of which would be used “to support programs to increase women’s participation in politics” (p.48). Additionally, the committee “supports continued efforts to incorporate women in stabilizing Iraq and creating its democratic government institutions, including through a women’s democracy initiative” (p.47).
The committee directs that at least $3 million is provided “to increase the capability of police sexual assault units in Guatemala in areas of highest prevalence for the purpose of protecting women and children from sexual assault” (p.59). The committee also expresses concern regarding “cases of UN peacekeepers abusing the people they have been sent to protect” and requires that the UN takes measures to prevent trafficking in persons or illegal sexual exploitation by UN employees (p.25).
The committee also directs the secretary of State to update the committee on “the strategy to prevent and respond to child marriage” (p.43).
The bill would include a provision that prohibits funds to the U.N. Population Fund and prohibits funds “for population planning activities or other population assistance to foreign nongovernmental organizations that promote or perform abortion, with certain exceptions” (p.85-86).
During consideration of the bill, the committee passed, by voice vote, an amendment to require USAID and the National Guard State Partnership Program to deliver humanitarian assistance to rural women in Ukraine.
