President Expected to Sign FY 17 Omnibus Appropriations
Both the House and Senate have passed the FY 17 Omnibus Appropriations bill (HR 244) to keep the government in operation through September 30th, the end of this fiscal year. The President is expected to sign the legislation into law before the current Continuing Resolution expires at midnight on May 5th.
Although there are some budget cuts, EPA has fared better than might have been expected given the rhetoric surrounding the Agency in recent months. Overall, the Agency is funded at $8.058 billion, about $81 million less than in FY 16. Much of the funding for state drinking water-related programs is flat-funded from FY 16 – DWSRF still at $863.2 million, PWSS still at $101.9 million, Great Lakes and Chesapeake Bay still at $300 million and $73 million respectively, and competitive technical assistance and training grants stable at $12.7 million. So, while these and other programs did not gain, they also did not lose.
After the application of various rescissions, EPA’s program accounts settled out at $706.47 million for Science & Technology; $$2.59 billion for Environmental Programs & Management; STAG was funded at $4.37 billion; and WIFIA received an additional $8 million for loans and $2 million for administration.
Now the spotlight shifts to FY 18 and what we can expect for the next round of funding.