This analysis was prepared by Venable, LLP, on behalf of AACOM.
On May 28, President Biden released his proposed budget for fiscal year (FY) 2022, requesting $6 trillion in total mandatory and discretionary spending. The full budget request follows the administration’s $1.5 trillion discretionary funding request released in April, representing an 8.4% increase over regular discretionary spending in FY 2021. The budget proposes $4 trillion in mandatory spending in FY 2022, which would grow to $5 trillion during the ten-year budget window. New spending proposals under the budget generally reflect the major proposals outlined under the American Jobs Plan and the American Families Plan, which would overhaul the nation’s infrastructure and invest in education and social safety net improvements, respectively.
Department of Education
Discretionary Funding
The budget includes $102.8 billion in new discretionary budget authority for the Department of Education (ED), a $29.8 billion, or 41% increase, above FY 2021 appropriation.
Mandatory Funding
The budget also includes nearly $50 billion in new mandatory budget authority for ED in FY 2022 tied to proposals included in the American Jobs Plan and American Families Plan.
Specific ED Programs
- Two Years of Free Community College
The budget requests $123 billion over ten years to provide two years of free community college to all Americans, including DREAMERs. The budget proposes a partnership between the federal government and states, tribes, and territories to ensure that first-time students and workers wanting to reskill can enroll in community college to earn a degree or credential for free.
- Strengthening School Infrastructure
The budget requests $2.4 billion in mandatory funding in FY 2022, and $12 billion over five years, for grants to invest in community college facilities and technology to help protect the health and safety of students and faculty, address education deserts (particularly for rural communities), grow local economies, improve energy efficiency and resilience, and narrow funding inequities. States will be responsible for using the funds to address both existing physical and technological infrastructure needs at community colleges and to expand access to community college in education deserts.
- Pell Grants
The budget proposes an $85 billion investment in Pell Grants over 10 years and $3 billion in additional discretionary funds for FY 2022, to increase the maximum Pell Grant by $400—the largest one-time increase since 2009. The discretionary increase, together with the $1,475 Pell Grant increase in the American Families Plan, would raise the maximum award to $8,370 for award year 2022–23.
- Expanding Federal Student Aid Eligibility to DREAMers
To qualify for Title IV federal financial aid under current law, students must either be a citizen or a permanent resident of the United States, among other requirements. The request proposes to expand eligibility for Pell Grants and Campus-Based Aid to Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients. The Administration proposes to work with Congress to ensure these students are also eligible for federal student loans.
- Support for Students at Minority-Serving Institutions
The request would provide grants to eligible four-year Historically Black College and Universities (HBCUs), Tribal College and Universities (TCCUs), and minority-serving institutions (MSIs), such as Hispanic-serving institutions and Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institutions to tackle longstanding inequities in postsecondary education and make the United States more competitive on the global stage. The budget proposes funding for these grants that will provide two years of subsidized tuition for eligible students from families earning less than $125,000.
- Postsecondary Institutional and Student Supports
The FY 2022 request increases institutional capacity and student supports at HBCUs, TCCUs, MSIs, and low-resourced institutions, including community colleges. The request provides a discretionary increase of more than $600 million over the FY 2021 enacted level for these programs. In addition, the request includes over $7 billion in mandatory funding in FY 2022 (and over $80 billion over ten years) from the American Jobs and Families Plans, including tripling existing mandatory funding to HBCUs, TCCUs, and MSIs; a new mandatory state formula grant program to improve college retention and completion rates; and funding to create or expand health care graduate pathways at HBCUs, TCCUs, and MSIs.
- Childcare Access for Postsecondary Students
For FY 2022, the request includes $95 million for the Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) program, an increase of $40 million from the FY 2021 appropriation. The CCAMPIS program helps to ensure that low-income student parents enroll in, persist in, and complete postsecondary education by helping to meet their needs for affordable and convenient child care.
Department of Health and Human Services
Discretionary Funding
The budget proposes $131.8 billion in discretionary budget authority for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). This would represent a 25% increase from the 2021 enacted level.
Mandatory Funding
The budget also includes $1.5 trillion for HHS in new mandatory funding for FY 2022.
Specific HHS Programs
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The budget restores capacity to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) by investing an additional $1.6 billion over the FY 2021 enacted level, for a total discretionary level of $8.7 billion. This is the largest budget authority increase for the CDC in almost two decades.
- Maternal Health
The budget provides more than $220 million in discretionary funding to reduce maternal mortality and morbidity. This includes increased funding to CDC’s Maternal Mortality Review Committees and the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Rural Maternity and Obstetrics Management Strategies program. In addition to discretionary resources, the budget also includes $3 billion over five years to invest in maternal health and reduce the maternal mortality rate.
- Indian Health Service
The budget provides a $2.2 billion, or 36% increase, for Indian Health Service (IHS) to address underfunding, expand access to high-quality health care, and address infrastructure challenges across Indian Country.
- Mental Health
The budget provides $1.6 billion to the Community Mental Health Services Block Grant, more than double the FY 2021 funding level.
- Substance Abuse
The budget requests $11.2 billion, including $10.7 billion in discretionary funding across HHS, to address the epidemic of opioids and other substance abuse. This would be $3.9 billion more than the FY 2021 enacted level. The budget would also increase access to medications for opioid use disorder and expand the behavioral health provider workforce.
- Biomedical Research
The budget includes $52 billion for NIH, a $9 billion, or 21% increase, over FY 2021. Included in this increase is $6.5 billion to establish the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA-H). Outside of ARPA-H, the remaining $2.5 billion increase will allow NIH to continue investing in basic research and translating research into clinical practice.
American Rescue Plan
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (the Act) was signed into law on March 11, 2021 and includes $160 billion in supplemental funding for programs at HHS.
- Mental Health and Behavioral Health Training
The Act provides $220 million for behavioral health workforce education and training. This includes $100 million to increase the supply of behavioral health professionals, $80 million for mental and behavioral health training, and $40 million to implement evidence-based strategies to promote mental and behavioral health among providers.
- Health Workforce
The Act provides $1.3 billion in funds to improve the supply of health care providers in underserved areas, including $800 million for National Health Service Corps, $330 million for Teaching Health Centers Graduate Medical Education, and $200 million for Nurse Corps.
- Public Health Workforce
The Act provides $7.66 billion to HHS to establish, expand, and sustain a robust public health workforce.
- Health Care Disparities
The HRSA is using $7.6 billion in the Act for the support of health centers and Health Center Program look-alikes, including enhancing direct health care services and infrastructure. IHS is using $6.1 billion from the Act to continue responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Expanding Access to Health Insurance Coverage
The Act lowers the percentage of income that an individual is required to pay for health care premiums on Marketplace plans, with a maximum of 8.5% for plan years 2021 and 2022. Additionally, consumers of all incomes are now potentially eligible for premium assistance, removing the previous cap of 400% of the federal poverty level. For 2021, the Act also allows individuals who have received unemployment benefits at any point in 2021 access to no-cost health care coverage.
HRSA
The FY 2022 budget requests $12.6 billion for HRSA, which is a $497 million increase over FY 2021 enacted levels. This total includes $7.8 billion in discretionary budget authority and $4.7 billion in mandatory funding and other sources.
- Health Centers
The FY 2022 budget provides $5.6 billion for health centers, including $3.9 billion in mandatory resources, which reflects a $95 million reduction in the health centers budget due to the mandatory sequester.
- Rural Health in America
The budget requests $400 million for rural health programs, which is $71 million above the FY 2021 enacted level. These funds will provide grants to improve rural area service delivery by strengthening health networks’ telehealth infrastructure and encouraging health care providers to stay in rural communities.
- Telehealth
The budget requests $37 million for telehealth, which is $3 million above FY 2021 enacted. This will be used to promote health services and distance learning with telehealth technologies.
- Robust Health Workforce
The budget provides a total of $1.8 billion for HRSA workforce programs, including $430 million in mandatory and other sources of funding. The budget also includes $477 million for the National Health Service Corps, including $292 million in mandatory funding, which reflects a $18 million reduction due to sequester. The budget includes $119 million in mandatory funding for the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education Program, which reflects a $17 million reduction due to sequester.
Department of Veterans Affairs
Discretionary Funding
The budget includes $117.2 billion in discretionary budget authority for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), an increase of $9.7 billion, or 9%, over the FY 2021 appropriation, for health care and benefits, among other items.
Mandatory Funding
The request also includes $152.7 billion in mandatory funding for the VA, an increase of $14.9 billion, or 10.2% over FY 2021, for benefit programs inclusive of compensation and pensions, readjustment benefits, housing, and insurance.
Specific VA Programs
- GI Bill Modernization
The budget includes an increase of $81.5 million to support the Digital GI Bill Modernization Effort to create a modernized business platform to better deliver education benefits. The modernization will enhance Education Service’s ability to process claims, collaborate with stakeholders and improve communications and service via an online portal. This will enable easier collaboration between external stakeholders (including schools and State Approving Agencies) and Veterans Benefit Administration for a more seamless Veteran experience.
Please contact AACOM Government Relations at aacomgr@aacom.org with questions or for further information.
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