Appropriations, budget resolutions, and infrastructure—oh my!

Historically the month of August is a slow one in Washington, D.C., with Congress taking off for a summer break. While the House and Senate are now in a recess for a several weeks, that break did not come before a frenzy of legislative work that is worthy of a recap.

In late July, before adjourning for August recess, the House of Representatives passed nine of the 12 FY 2022 spending bills needed to fund the federal government after the current fiscal year ends on September 30, 2021. The Labor, Health and Human Services, Education (LHHS-ED) and Related Agencies passed largely in the same form as it passed the House Appropriations Committee earlier in July. The bill includes a $100 million proposed increase to the Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Center (21st CCLC) initiative – the only federal funding stream dedicated to afterschool, before-school, and summer learning programs. President Biden had proposed a $50 million increase for 21st CCLC. Also included in the $253.8 billion spending bill:

• $1.5 billion increase for Child Care and Development Block Grant, for a total of $7.4 billion. This Department of Health and Human Services program supports school-age children with afterschool and summer programs, in addition to providing child care to infants and toddlers.
• A historic $19.5 billion increase for ESSA Title I grants to Local Education Agencies for a total $36 billion. These Education funds can be used by school districts to support afterschool and summer learning.
• $85 million increase for Title IV Part A Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grants for a total of $1.3 billion. These funds can be used for afterschool science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), physical activity, and a host of other uses.
• $413 million increase for Full-Service Community Schools for a total of $443 million. Full Service Community Schools funding supports comprehensive services and expands evidence-based models that meet the holistic needs of children, families, and communities, including afterschool and summer learning components.

On the Senate side, no FY 2022 spending bills have passed the Senate floor, and the Senate Appropriations Committee is not expected to take up their version of the Labor, Education, HHS spending bill until at least September. However, plenty of other action has taken place in the Senate.

This week, the U.S. Senate passed the FY2022 budget resolution with reconciliation instructions by a vote of 50 to 49. The Senate passes budget resolution calls for substantial new education investments including nearly three quarters of a trillion dollars over ten years for new education and health investments intended to cover “robust” amounts of the president’s education proposals from the American Jobs Plan and the American Families Plan.  The House will likely vote on the budget resolution when they return to session in late August. The budget resolution is a framework for more specific legislation that would need to pass later this year and includes instructions to the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee to allocate $726 billion. The following priorities based on the president’s proposed plans could be included in the final legislation:

• Universal Pre-K for three- and four-year-olds
• Child care for working families including a child care entitlement for children ages birth to five. School age children will continued to be covered by the Child Care Development Block Grant (CCDBG) as well as tax deductions.
• Tuition-free community college
• Investments in HBCUs, MSIs, HSIs, TCUs, and ANNHIs
• Increase the maximum Pell grant award
• School infrastructure, student success grants, and educator investments
• Workforce development and job training

Separate from the budget resolution and reconciliation process, in early August the Senate also passed the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). On August 10 with Vice President Harris presiding, the bill was approved by a vote of 69 to 30, including 19 Republicans. The White House is embracing this show of bipartisanship to invest approximately $1 trillion (roughly $550 billion in new spending) in traditional infrastructure. With regard to education, the bipartisan infrastructure bill includes:

• A total of $65 billion for broadband investment to help families access the internet and afford devices
• $5 billion for clean-energy school buses
• $500 million over 5 years for competitive grants to schools and non-profits for energy efficiency improvements
• $200 million over 5 years to remove lead contamination in school drinking water, as part of a much bigger drinking water program
• Reauthorizes and extends until 2023 the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act, which helps fund schools in 700 counties that have federal forest land 

While Congress is on recess, reaching out this month to policymakers is especially important. Friends of afterschool can weigh in with their members of Congress about the importance of funding afterschool and summer learning programs.