Since the start of the 111th Congress, Democrats have worked with the Obama Administration to advance a bold, positive agenda that rebuilds and reinvests in America, beginning with restoring a healthy economy. Years of misplaced priorities and failed fiscal policies under Republican leadership in Washington brought the nation’s economy to the brink of disaster. Beginning with the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act and followed by legislation to strengthen the housing market and prevent unnecessary foreclosures, support small businesses, protect consumers from abusive credit card practices, provide a boost to the automobile industry, invest in infrastructure, invest in health care, energy, and education, and provide a safety net for American families in their hour of need, Senate Democrats have committed themselves to not only bringing our nation back from the brink of disaster but laying the groundwork for economic prosperity. While these efforts have made a difference, Senate Democrats will redouble our efforts in the coming weeks to create jobs.
Senate Democrats passed an economic recovery package that is getting the American economy working again.During the Bush Administration, life for millions of American families grew less affordable and less secure. Years of misguided fiscal policies and irresponsible regulatory failures contributed to a financial meltdown that nearly crippled the national and global economy and threatened the American Dream for people throughout the country. In January, the 111th Congress and the Obama Administration inherited an economy plagued by lower wages, fewer jobs, declining home values, foreclosures, and skyrocketing costs for basic necessities like gas, health care, and college tuition. Not since the Great Depression had the need for a strong economic recovery package been so urgent and clear.
On February 13, 2009, by a supermajority vote of 60, Congressenacted final passage on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (H.R. 1, P.L. 111-5). On February 17, 2009, President Obama signed the bill into law. TheRecovery Act took steps to:
·Save or create more than 3.5 million jobs through investments in transportation, federal, housing, broadband, and environmental infrastructure; investments in state fiscal relief; investments in energy innovation; investments in health-care modernization, and tax incentives for small businesses;
·Provide the Making Work Pay tax credit for 95 percent of working families; expand the Child Tax Credit and the Earned Income Tax Credit; expand the First Time Homebuyer Tax Credit; and extend tax relief for small businesses;
·Make long term investments in our economy to ensure competitiveness in a 21 Century global economy, including investments in science, education, and the development of clean, efficient, alternative, and renewable energy; and
·And extended a hand of help to those Americans hardest hit by the economic crisis, investing billions in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), extension of federal emergency unemployment benefits, state fiscal relief to ensure continuation of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, subsidies for COBRA Continuation Coverage for unemployed workers, and relief payments for seniors, veterans and other Americans in need.
Moreover, the Recovery Act, is providing transparency and accountability to guarantee that all taxpayer money is invested responsibly.
The Recovery Act is working. While it took years to create our current economic mess, the Recovery Act has made a difference even though only approximately half of the investments have been distributed thus far. The measure staved off a an even more severe recession, prevented further job loss, generated economic activity, and laid a foundation for sustainable growth.
·Last month, the White House announced that certain recipients of Recovery Act funds have reported the creation of 640,329 direct jobs. About 325,000 of these jobs are in education and over 80,000 are in construction. These numbers, however, represent only about 16 percent of expenditures through September 30 and do not reflect the majority of Recovery Act funding to date, which has gone directly to individuals and states, including. Moreover, the reported data does not capture indirect or induced jobs created when prime contractors hire suppliers or other companies to complete projects or when newly employed workers spend their pay checks. It is estimated that, if included, indirect jobs would add another 50 percent or more to the direct jobs numbers and induced jobs would add an additional 36 percent.Taken as a whole, the reported data confirms earlier estimates that the Recovery Act would create or save over one million jobs by now, even though less than half of the Recovery Act funds have been put to work. [Office of the Vice President, 10/30/09, CBPP, 10/28/09]
·A recent Wall Street Journal article reported that: “Economists in the latest Wall Street Journal forecasting survey mostly give the government solid marks for its handling of the financial crisis, saying the economy should begin adding jobs over the next 12 months… On average, the economists expect gross domestic product to rise 3 percent in the current quarter at a seasonally adjusted annual rate. The forecast is a substantial improvement over the 0.6 percent growth seen just three months ago, and they now expect quarterly GDP to expand more than 2.5 percent in every period through the first half of 2010.”[Wall Street Journal, 9/11/09]
·According to Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projections, “The effect of the stimulus legislation on the level of economic activity will probably build during the second half of 2009 [and] have its maximum impact in the first half of 2010… CBO estimates that real GDP will be 1.4 percent to 3.8 percent higher in the fourth quarter of 2009 than it would have been without the stimulus, 1.1 percent to 3.4 percent higher in the fourth quarter of 2010, 0.4 percent to 1.2 percent higher in the fourth quarter of 2011, and zero to 0.3 percent higher by the fourth quarter of 2013.” [CBO, 8/09]
·According to economist Mark Zandi, “the stimulus has mainly helped by forestalling bigger job and program cuts by state and local governments. Increased aid to unemployed workers is contributing to the recent firming in consumer confidence (which hit an all-time low in February, just before the stimulus took effect) and helping to stabilize retail sales.” “It may be hard to tell when hundreds of thousands of jobs are vanishing each month, but without the stimulus, job losses would be measurably worse.” [Economy.com, 7/7/09]
·Moreover, federal assistance for Americans in need is not only the right thing to do,it is the smart thing to do in an effort to stimulate the economy. “Starting in April, a family of four on food stamps received an average of $80 extra. Money from the program – officially known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program – percolates quickly through the economy. The U.S. Department of Agriculture calculates that for every $5 of food-stamp spending, there is $9.20 of total economic activity, as grocers and farmers pay their employees and suppliers, who in turn shop and pay their bills.” [Wall Street Journal, 7/7/09]
Congress passed legislation to stabilize the housing market for homeowners, renters, and lenders. As Democrats work to get the economy growing again by making long-term investments, creating jobs, providing middle-class tax relief, we have not forgotten the origin of the current recession: the crash of the home mortgage market.
In 2008, more than 2.3 million U.S. properties faced foreclosure, an 81 percent increase from the previous year. This was added to the 1.3 million properties that faced foreclosure in 2007, a 75 percent increase from 2006. And while Democrats believe we can lower this number through aggressive homeowner assistance programs, health care reform, job creation, and economic stimulus measures, early forecasts project that overall foreclosures couldrise by 2.4 million in 2009 and by 9 million over the next three years.
Moreover, while the result of years of abuse by the mortgage lending industry, excessive risk taking by investors, lax regulation under the Bush Administration, lack of affordable housing, and poor choices by some homeowners, the housing crisis is a concern for every American. It is estimated that by the end of 2009, more than 40 million homeowners will have experienced a decline in their home values due to surrounding foreclosures, at a total cost of $325 billion. Cities and towns across America have experienced business closings, increased crime, increased costs, and an undermined tax base due to the inability of homeowners to make mortgage payments and the eventual abandonment of homes in their neighborhoods. Thus, stabilizing the housing market is not an option; it must be a cornerstone of any plan for economic recovery.
Building upon legislation passed in the 110th Congress, the Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2009, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, and President Obama's “Making Home Affordable" program, on March 19, 2009, the 111th Congress passed the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act (S. 896) to prevent unnecessary foreclosures, improve access to affordable home loans, increase the availability of credit, protect renters, and prevent homelessness. President Obama signed this legislation into law on May 20, 2009 (P.L. 111-22).
The new law:
·Encourages participation in the HOPE for Homeowners program, including by offering new incentives for lenders to negotiate loan modifications with borrowers at risk of foreclosure the program and reducing fees for homeowners and lenders that have previously discouraged them from participating;
·Gives FHA and USDA’s Rural Housing Service (RHS) the flexibility needed to modify loans consistent with the Obama Administration’s loan modification program;
·Protects lenders from frivolous lawsuits when they make loan modifications consistent with the President’s program or done through the Hope for Homeowners program;
·Increases funding for foreclosure prevention including counseling, additional fair housing employees, and education programs to warn American about foreclosure scams;
·Strengthens tools to ensure that predatory lenders cannot act as lenders or servicers in the FHA programs’;
·Establishes the right of a homeowner to know who owns their mortgage;
·Provides renters who live in foreclosed properties with at least a 90-day notice for eviction;
·Protects the bank deposits and savings of consumers with a four-year extension of the increase in deposit insurance to $250,000;
·Increases the borrowing authority of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to reduce the financial burden on small community banks;
·Provides new resources to respond to the nation’s homelessness crisis and prevent additional homelessness; and
·Expands accountability of financial rescue funds.
Congress approved a program to give entrepreneurs the resources they need to help boost our economy.In July, the Senate passed a bipartisan bill (S. 1513)to temporarily extend the Small Business Administration’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. The legislation was signed into law on July 31, 2009 (P.L. 111-43). This temporary reauthorization, which extends SBIR and other programs through September 30, 2009, gives Congress more time to pass a comprehensive bipartisan bill that will strengthen and improve the SBIR program and provide long-term stability for the program.
On July 13, the Senate took a step toward that comprehensive reauthorization by passing H.R. 2965, the SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act of 2009 (STTR refers to the Small Business Technology Transfer program). SBIR and STTR stimulate technological innovation, allow small businesses to meet federal research and development needs and provide seed capital for small businesses to develop ideas until they attract outside investment.
Although small firms employ 41 percent of the nation’s high-tech workers and generate 13 to 14 times more patents per employee than large firms, they have received a disproportionately low share of federal R&D dollars. The SBIR program was designed in 1982 to harness the innovative capacity of America’s small businesses to meet the needs of our federal agencies and to help grow small, high-tech firms that, in turn, grow local economies all across the nation. Since then, the SBIR program has generated more than 84,000 patents and millions of jobs. Eleven federal agencies participate in the SBIR program - including the Department of Defense and National Science Foundation – allocating 2.5 percent of their extramural research and development dollars for the program.
H.R. 2965will: 1) reauthorize the programs for eight years, giving small businesses and the government the stability they need to plan for and transition important technologies for our country; 2) amend the eligibility requirements to allow businesses owned and controlled by multiple venture capital firms to compete for a certain percentage of SBIR projects while making sure that there’s a fair playing field for the small businesses that are independently owned and operated; 3) adjust the amount of SBIR and STTR awards to reflect inflation costs while taking a measured approach to increasing the allocation dedicated to these important small business research and development programs; and 4) improve the diversity of the programs, geographically and otherwise, by reauthorizing the Federal and State Technology (FAST) program and Rural Outreach Program for five years.
Democrats enacted and ensured the continuation of the successful “Cash for Clunkers”economic stimulus program. On August 6, 2009, Democrats passed H.R. 3435, Making Supplemental Appropriations for the Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save Program, also known as the Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS) or “Cash for Clunkers.” In an effort to boost auto sales and promote higher vehicle fuel economy, the CARS program provided consumers who trade-in an old, less fuel efficient vehicle with a rebate of $3,500 or $4,500 toward the purchase of a new, more fuel-efficient vehicle, provided the trade-in is scrapped by the dealer. Sales must be made before November 1, and the rebate amount is determined by fuel economy and fuel savings of the new car relative to the old car, as well as vehicle class.
In June 2009, the program was established and appropriated for in H.R. 2346, the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2009 (P.L. 111-32), which is summarized below. The initial appropriation was $1 billion, enough for between 222,000 and 286,000 rebates. The CARS program was officially launched on July 24, after the Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration released the final rule for implementing the program and, in conjunction with the final rule, the Environmental Protection Agency reviewed and updated the fuel economy ratings of the nation’s vehicle fleet. Due to an overwhelming response from consumers and dealerships, the Obama Administration notified Congress within the first week that the initial appropriation would soon be exhausted.
After deliberating about the effectiveness of the CARS program in helping the nation recover from economic recession and in addressing our collective environmental challenges, Congress passed H.R. 3435, which provided an additional $2 billion for the program. The amount was taken from previously appropriated funds in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009(ARRA), which is summarized above, for loan guarantees that support the rapid deployment of renewable energy systems, electric power transmission systems, and leading edge biofuelprojects. Due to concerns about the negative impact this offset could have on these long-term goals, President Obama has promised to work with Congress to restore these funds in the very near future.
As we move forward in this Congress and begin to look toward energy reform, the nation can be assured that Senate Democrats are committed to meeting and exceeding the nation’s long-term environmental and economic goals and in ensuring our nation recovers from the current economic recession.
Congress passed critical legislation to ensure the continuation of highway projects, housing market recovery, and unemployment benefits.Economists and industry experts believe that in the coming weeks, the Highway Trust Fund, Federal Unemployment Trust Fund, and the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA) will face funding shortfalls that could result in the loss of nearly 240,000 jobs, 4.6 million American losing unemployment insurance benefits, and a tightening of the mortgage-lending market.
The Highway Trust Fund reimburses states for critical highway project spending; in the absence of those funds, states would likely scale back their projects and cut jobs. The Unemployment Trust Fund loans money to states to ensure they are able to meet their obligation to provide unemployment insurance Americans out of work due to the current economic crisis. Moreover, FHA and GNMA are playing an increasingly critical role in the effort to stabilize and jumpstart the nation’s housing market as the private lending industry has contracted. FHA backed loans have gone from comprising 3 percent of the mortgage market to comprising 25-30 percent of the market, and GNMA, which securitizes FHA and Department of Veterans Affairs loans, has seen its volume increase threefold. Due to increased demand, FHA and GNMA are approaching their loan limits; if reached, the entities would be unable to provide first-time mortgage and refinancing loans and the mortgage market would constrict further.
In an effort to avoid shortfalls in these areas – all critical to the nation’s economic recovery,
the Senate passed H.R. 3357, a bill to Restore Sums to the Highway Trust Fund and for Other Purposes. The legislation wouldtransfer$7 billion to the Highway Account of the Highway Trust Fund to ensure the continuation of state highway projects; provide funds to the Federal Unemployment Fund for the purposes of repayable advances to states in an effort to ensure the availability of unemployment benefits for the nation’s out-of-work workers; and increase the mortgage commitment authority of the FHA and GNMA to ensure continued mortgage lending and the recovery of the housing market.
President Obama signed this legislation into law on August 7, 2009.
Congressional Democrats approved a fiscally-responsible budget that addresses the economic crisis that we inherited and lays a new foundation for our nation’s economy.On April 29, the Senate approved the Conference Report to the Fiscal Year 2010 Budget Resolution (S. Con. Res. 13). This budget addresses the fiscal and economic crises that we have inherited and returns the country to a sound fiscal course by cutting the federal budget deficit in half by 2012 and by two-thirds by 2014 – bringing the deficit down to three percent of GDP. The Democratic budget:
·Preserves major priorities in President Obama’s budget proposal with strategic investments in energy, education, and health care – investments needed to restore our crumbling economy and put the country in a position to remain globally competitive. The budget:
o Promotes energy independence, building on the energy initiatives in the economic recovery package (P.L. 111-5) with investments in energy efficiency and clean energy;
o Makes investments in education and training programs that will help our economic growth and build a highly-skilled workforce to compete in the global marketplace; and
o Provides for affordable health care by including a deficit-neutral reserve fund for a major health reform initiatives;
·Provides tax relief for the middle class, with $764 billion in tax cuts for individuals and families over the next five years. These cuts include an extension of 2001 and 2003 income tax directed at individuals and families with incomes under $250,000; and allows for extension of the Making Work Pay tax cut for 95 percent of American workers; and
·Supports our troops and accounts for war costs, matching President Obama’s core defense budget and the President’s request for additional war costs. The budget also accurately represents costs like the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Senate Democrats voted to protect millions of Americans from unfair, unjust, and unacceptable credit card industry practices. On May 19, 2009, the Senate approved the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 (H.R. 627, as amended) (the “CARD act”) by a vote of 90-5. This bipartisan legislation will stop credit card companies from misleading their customers with hidden charges and confusing terms. The legislation was signed into law on May 22, 2009 (P.L. 111-24). Specifically, the CARD Act:
·Establishes strong consumer protectionsby preventing unfair increases in interest rates and changes in terms, prohibiting exorbitant and unnecessary fees, requiring fairness in application and timing of card payments, and protecting the rights of financially-responsible credit card users;
·Enhances consumer disclosures by requiring disclosures related to payoff timing, late payment deadlines and penalties, card renewal terms, and requiring each credit issuer to post their credit card agreements;
·Protects young consumerstargeted by aggressive and irresponsible credit card marketing offers;
·Strengthens oversight of credit card industry practices byrequiringcredit card issuers to post the credit card agreements on the Internet and provide those agreements to the Federal Reserve Board, requiring the Federal Reserve Board to review the consumer credit card market, including: terms of credit card agreements, practices of credit card issuers and the cost and availability of consumer credit, and increasing penalties for card companies that violate the Truth in Lending Act as it applies to credit card costumers;
·Protects recipients of gift cards by eliminating decliningvalues and hidden fees in gift cards and requiring that gift cards have a five-year life span.
·Protects small businessesby requiring a study on the use of credit cards by small businesses and establishing a Small Business Information Security Task Force to address the information technology security needs of small businesses and help prevent the loss of credit card data; and
·Promotes financial literacyby requiring comprehensive summary of existing financial literacy programs and development of strategic plan to improve financial literacy education.
By 2007, 73 percent of American families had a credit card, and 60 percent of those families carry a balance. The average balance on those cards was $7,300 – a 30 percent rise since 2004. (Federal Reserve, 2/2009) Today, Americans owe more than $950 billion in revolving credit card debt. (Consumers Union, accessed 5/7/2009) And, in spite of the fact that credit card delinquencies are rising, credit card companies have mailed 4.2 billion credit card solicitations in 2008, and have posted huge profits, many the majority of which come directly from interest payments. (Demos, 2008; Consumers Union, accessed 5/7/2009)
On top of all the financial difficulties American families are facing, credit card companies should not be allowed to abuse American consumers. The CARD Actwill level the playing field and keep the rules consistent from beginning to end, saving families thousands of dollars a year. Democrats are committed to restoring confidence in our economy by looking out for consumers and keeping credit card companies honest.
Senate Democrats passed legislation to improve law enforcement’s ability to prosecute financial and mortgage fraud. After 9/11, the Bush Administration shifted resources and attention away from the investigation of financial fraud, leaving law enforcement under-manned and under-funded and criminal statutes inadequate to deal with modern financial fraud schemes at a time when corporate and mortgage fraud were on the rise due to lax regulation by the Administration and Republican Congress of the housing and banking industries.
As of a result, thousands of fraud allegations went unexamined and many instances of fraud went unchecked. More than 65,000 suspicious activity reports were filed alleging mortgage fraud in 2008, compared with nearly 4,700 in 2001, nearly 13 times as much. This fraud ultimately contributed to the global economic crisis that is threatening the financial health of our nation and the security of American families today. (Senate Judiciary Committee referencing the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, available hereand here.)
On May 19, 2009, the Senate passed the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009 (S. 386) to enhance, strengthen, and rebuild the government’s ability to investigate and prosecute the increasing instances of mortgage and corporate fraud. President Obama signed this legislation into law on May 20, 2009 (P.L. 111-21). Specifically, FERA will:
·Authorize more than $260 million per year in Fiscal Years 2010 and 2011 to hire hundreds of additional prosecutors, agents, and staff to conduct investigations and prosecutions of financial fraud at the Department of Justice, the FBI, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S Secret Service, the Office of Inspector General for the Housing and Urban Development Department, the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), and the Office of the Inspector General for the SEC;
·Improve and modernize fraud and money laundering statutes to strengthen prosecutors’ability to combat fraud, including mortgage and securities fraud, by:
oUpdating the definition of “financial institution” in federal fraud statutes to include mortgage lending businesses that are not directly regulated or insured by the federal government (these businesses account for nearly half of residential mortgages);
oAmending the major fraud statute to protect funds expended under the economic recovery package and the bank bailout;
oStrengthening the False Claims Act to reverse recent court decisions that have made it more difficult to recover funds and impose penalties for proven frauds; and
oFilling key statutory gaps to account for modern types of fraud and correct misinterpretations of the law in recent court decisions; and
·Establish a commission to investigate the origins of the economic crisis so that we can avoid similar crisis in the future.
Besides the obvious benefits of combating financial crime and protecting taxpayer dollars from waste, fraud, and abuse, FERA also will recover billions of dollars in restitution, fines, and penalties for the government and victims. For every $1 spent in the DOJ’s Criminal Division to prosecute fraud, more than $20 is recovered. For every $1 spent in the DOJ’s Civil Division to recover health care funds under the False Claims Act,more than $15 is returned to the government. (Department of Justice and the Taxpayers Against Fraud.)
The 111thCongress passed a law to ensure fair pay for all Americans. While the battle for equality and civil rights is far from over, in January 2009, all those who believe in the promise of “equality and justice for all” achieved a major victory when President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 into law (P.L. 111-2). In doing so, Congress and President Obama ended a nearly two-year battle to overturn a Supreme Court decision that made it more difficult for victims of pay discrimination to seek redress and receive justice.
In Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., Inc., the Court ruled that the 180-day statute of limitations on filing a discrimination claim with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 begins to run when the original discriminatory decision is made and conveyed to the employee, regardless of whether the pay discrimination continues beyond the 180-day period. This ruling reversed a long-standing interpretation, used by nine federal circuits and the EEOC in both Democratic and Republican Administrations, under which the statute of limitations began to run each time an employee received a pay check or other form of compensation reflecting the discrimination.
The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act restored the “pay-check accrual” interpretation to ensure that employees who can prove pay discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age or disability will not be forever barred from seeking redress because they did not learn they were victims of pay discrimination within six months after the discriminatory decision was first made.
A previous attempt to pass this legislation in the 110th Congress was obstructed by Senate Republicans, but in the 111th Congress, with a larger majority, Senate Democrats were able to pass the bill on a vote of 61 to 30. The House of Representatives passed the bill on a vote of 250 to 177 and the measure became law on January 29.
Congress funded critical federal government programs for Fiscal Year 2009.
On March 11, 2009, theOmnibus Appropriations Act, 2009 (H.R. 1105) was presented to President Obama for signature into law (P.L. 111-8). House and Senate Democrats were able to complete important work blocked by Republicans last year to provide the resources, guidance, and new initiatives for federal government programs in Fiscal Year 2009, at a time when they are so desperately needed. This appropriations measure contained nine bills that are essential to keeping the federal government working to enhance the health, safety, and economic security of the American people. The Omnibusincludes critical commitments to:
Ensure our economic security with investments in:
·Job-creating highway projects through the Department of Transportation;
·Reemployment and retraining services to millions of unemployed and otherwise vulnerable Americans through the Department of Labor;
·Help for struggling homeowners through the Federal Housing Administration, Housing and Counseling Assistance program, and the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation;
·Community and economic development grants to help communities weather and recover from the current economic storm though the Department of Housing and Urban Development;
·Increased investments in more energy efficient vehicles and buildings as well as solar, wind, geothermal, and biomass energy sources through the Department of Energy; and
·Vigorous enforcement of securities laws to help bolster the integrity of the financial markets through the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Ensure educational excellence and competition in the global economy with investments in:
·The Pell Grant program, which helps seven million low- and middle-income families pay for college and vocational training through the Department of Education. TheOmnibus provides $17.3 billion for the Pell Grant program, an increase of $3.1 billion above 2008, with a $5,350 maximum award amount. These funds will assist seven million students with the costs of higher education and will help 1.4 million students attend school with $1.9 billion in funding for federal supplemental educational opportunity grants, federal work study, Perkins Loans, and the Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership program;
·Assistance for Students with Disabilities, providing $11.5 billion for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which helps ensure that all children with disabilities have access to a free, appropriate public education;
·Grants for disadvantaged students, with $14.5 billion, a $594 million increase, for Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, which provides resources to local school districts to help disadvantaged students succeed academically. The Omnibus also provides $546 million, an increase of $54 million, for school improvement grants to help turn around struggling schools;
·Head Start, a highly-successful federal-to-local grant program established in 1965, which provides early childhood education and services, including health, nutrition, and social and behavioral development for low-income preschool children and their families. The Omnibus provides $7.1 billion for this proven program, an increase of $235 million over 2008, to ensure that 900,000 low-income children have access to high quality preschool services; and
·After school programs, providing $1.1 billion for 21st Century Community Learning Centers to help ensure students have a safe and supervised environment before the school day begins and after it ends. This funding will serve 1.7 million children.
Ensure our health with investments in:
·Lifesaving research into diseases such as Alzheimer's, cancer, and diabetes through the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The Omnibus provides $30.3 billion,$938 million above Fiscal Year 2008, to the 27 Institutes and Centers at the NIH to fund research into diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer’s, and diabetes;
·Health care services to nearly 470,000 uninsured Americans through Community Health Centers. The Omnibus provides $2.2 billion for Community Health Centers, including migrant health center, and health care centers for the homeless;
·Health Promotion Programs at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The Omnibus provides $6.7 billion for public health programs that promote health behaviors, prevent disease, investigate health problems and prepare for emerging health threats;
·High Risk Insurance Poolsto provide affordable health coverage though state-sponsored health insurance plans to those denied coverage, usually because of pre-existing medical conditions. The Omnibus includes $75 million to states for these plans, which insure nearly 200,000 individuals;
·Outreach to Seniors Eligible for Medicare,by providing $45 million, a $6 million increase above 2008, to help seniors, including the 40 million Americans already enrolled in the program, understand which Medicare benefits are available to them.
·Small, rural hospitals and health care networks for more than 775,000 rural residents in underserved communities through the Department of Health and Human Services. The Omnibus provides $289 million to support more than 1,200 small hospitals in rural, underserved communities;
·Training for health professionals, through a $842 million investment in Health Professions Training programs. This funding will help train physicians, nurses, and other medical personnel, to help improve access to critical health care services;
·Cancer screening, with a new $25 million national program to provide colorectal cancer screening and diagnostic follow-up care. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that if every American over age 50 were regularly screened, 60 percent of the 55,000 annual deaths from colorectal cancer could be prevented; and
·Combating autism by providing full funding of the Combating Autism Act with $63.4 million for prevention of autism and support for families affected by autism and related disorders.
Ensure our safety with investments in:
·New reforms in place to make children's products safer through the Consumer Product Safety Commission;
·Food and medical product safety inspections through the Food and Drug Administration.;
·Aviation safety and air traffic organization through the Federal Aviation Administration;
·Workplace safety standard enhancements and enforcement through the Occupational Safety and Health Administration;
·Quarantine stations at ports of entry around the country through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention;
·Agents to ferret out drug producers and traffickers through the Drug Enforcement Agency; and
·Intelligence analysts and other professionals fighting crime and terrorism in the United States through the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Ensure global health and our national security with investments in:
·Critical diplomatic operations, including funding 500 additional positions to fill vacancies in the Foreign and Civil Service at the Department of State;
·Worldwide embassy security protection to ensure that U.S. personnel are safe and secure;
·Lifesaving initiatives for international HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, and care as well as global programs to fight malaria and tuberculosis, and improve maternal and child health;
·Humanitarian assistance to help displaced people around the world, avert famines, and provide critical assistance during natural disasters; and
·Peacekeeping activities around the world, including in Sudan, Liberia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kosovo, and Lebanon.