On June 18, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and Related Agencies approved, by voice vote, the FY2016 Agriculture, Rural Development, FDA, and Related Agencies spending bill (as-yet-unnumbered).
The bill would provide $20.65 billion in discretionary funding for FY2016, which is $175 million below FY2015 and $1.1 billion below President Obama’s request. Including both discretionary and mandatory funding for the Department of Agriculture, domestic and international nutrition programs, and the FDA, the overall bill totals $143.9 billion.
According to the committee summary, the bill would provide $6.484 billion in discretionary funding for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), which is $139 million below FY2015 and the president’s request.
The bill would allocate $21.507 billion in mandatory funding for free or reduced-price school lunches and snacks for qualifying children under the Child Nutrition Program. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) would receive $81.653 billion in mandatory spending, which is $184 million below FY2015 and $2 billion below the president’s budget request. The measure also would provide $288.317 million for the Commodity Assistance Program.
Title II of the Food for Peace program would receive $1.417 billion, $17 million over the president’s request, while the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition program would receive $191.626 million in FY2016.
More information will be provided once the committee releases its report.
