|
 The President's Budget Request
January — February
In January, the president delivers the State of the Union address, laying out his priorities for the coming year. This is followed in early February by the president's budget request, a detailed proposal for the next fiscal year, which begins October 1.
What You Can Do
Each December, members of Congress sign a bipartisan letter to the president asking him to prioritize funding for the International Affairs Budget. Urge your legislators to sign this letter emphasizing the importance of foreign aid.
 The Budget Resolution
March — April
The House and Senate Budget Committees create a budget resolution, which establishes a spending level for each category of the budget.
What You Can Do
The budget category that funds foreign aid is called the International Affairs Budget. Urge the budget committees to support the highest possible funding level for this category.
 Appropriation Bills
May — June
The House and Senate Appropriations Committees, and their subcommittees, create appropriation bills to determine specific funding for different parts of the budget. These bills are debated and voted on by the full House and Senate.
What You Can Do
The bill that establishes funding for foreign aid is the Foreign Operations bill. Urge your members of Congress to support strong funding for core humanitarian and development accounts within this bill.
 Finalizing the Budget
June — September
Conference committees resolve the differences between the House and Senate appropriations bills. The House and Senate vote on the conference reports, and the president signs the appropriations bills into law.
What You Can Do
The House and Senate appropriations bills may have different funding levels for the same programs. Urge both houses to support the highest funding level possible for poverty-fighting programs.
 Beginning of the Fiscal Year
October 1
|
U.S. foreign assistance programs help people help themselves. They also strengthen U.S. economic security, defend against global health threats and create the basis for respect and good-will toward the United States in countries around the world.
But the United States allocates less than 1 percent of its federal spending to poverty-focused assistance for other countries. That makes us the smallest contributor among major donor governments. Americans are a caring and generous people, and our government should reflect our values.
U.S. international assistance has proven its power to contribute enormously to the lives of millions of people.
- More than 3 million lives are saved each year through U.S. international immunization programs.
- Infant mortality rates have been reduced by 10 percent worldwide in recent years. Child survival programs funded by the U.S. government have made a major contribution to that reduction.
- With the help of U.S. international assistance, literacy rates worldwide have risen 50 percent since the 1960s.
- Investments by the United States and other donors in better seeds and agricultural techniques over the past two decades have made it possible to feed an additional billion people in the world.
- In recent years, U.S. assistance has helped rebuild Central American countries devastated by hurricanes and rebuild countries ravaged by war, such as Afghanistan.
|
