The Nearly $63 Billion FY2019 Funding Package for Commerce, Justice, and Science Agencies (S. 3072)

What is S. 3072?

(Updated January 7, 2019)

This bipartisan bill would support vital federal law enforcement activities, job training programs, and promote trade, in addition to funding scientific research and space exploration.This bill would provide $62.995 billion in fiscal year 2019 funding — an increase of $3.4 billion from the prior year — for the federal government’s commerce, justice, and science-related activities through the Departments of Commerce and Justice, among other agencies.

COMMERCE

This section of the bill would provide the Dept. of Commerce with $11.57 billion in funding for FY2019, an increase of $435 million from the prior year.

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO): $3.37 billion would be provided for USPTO to carry out its work of protecting the ideas and inventions of the nation’s entrepreneurs.

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST): $1.04 billion would be provided for NIST, a decrease of $161 million from the prior year. That’d include $140 million for the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership program, which is a public-private partnership serving small- and medium-sized manufacturers in all 50 states.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA): $5.48 billion would be provided for NOAA, a decrease of $426 million from the prior year. It’d continue core NOAA operations including: ocean monitoring, fisheries management, coastal grants to states, aquaculture research, weather satellites, and severe weather forecasting.

Bureau of the Census: $3.82 billion would be provided, an increase of $1 billion from the prior year, so the Census Bureau can continue its efforts to hold the costs of the 2020 Census lower than the 2010 Census.

Additionally, this section of the bill would provide:

• $305.5 million to the Economic Development Administration (EDA) for its public works program, which supports brick-and-mortar projects in distressed communities.

• $499 million International Trade Administration (ITA):

JUSTICE

This section of the bill would provide the Dept. of Justice (DOJ) with $30.7 billion in funding for FY2019, an increase of $402.5 million from the prior year. That’d include a 2% increase for salaries and expenses for most federal law enforcement agencies.

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI): The FBI would receive $9.415 billion to cover salaries, expenses, and construction — an increase of $15 million from the prior year. Of the total, $91.6 million would be provided for the Innocent Images National Initiative to target and investigate sexual predators on the internet. Funding would also be increased for cybersecurity activities to neutralize, mitigate, and disrupt illegal computer-supported operations.

Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA): $2.23 billion would be provided for the DEA, an increase of $44 million from the prior year, to continue its enforcement of controlled substances laws and regulations — particularly efforts to combat heroin use and prescription drug abuse.

U.S. Marshals Service (USMS): $2.95 billion would be provided for the USMS, including $1.5 billion for federal prisoner detention expenses. Funding would allow for the USMS to continue enforcing the Adam Walsh Act by apprehending convicted sex offenders who fail to register as fugitives; executing responsibilities under International Megan’s Law like alerting foreign governments when registered sex offenders travel; and providing support for a new Regional Fugitive Task Force.

U.S. Attorneys: $2.18 billion would be provided for the 94 U.S. Attorneys offices, including $48.34 million to continue investigations and prosecutions of the sexual exploitation of children under the Adam Walsh Act. It’d also provide $60.5 million to continue efforts to combat cybercrime and intrusions.

Law Enforcement Grant Programs: A total of $2.87 billion would be provided for state and local law enforcement and crime prevention grant programs that’d go to state and local LEO agencies, the Office on Violence Against Women, and juvenile justice programs. The following grant programs are among those funded by this section:

• $445 million for the Byrne JAG program, which is the primary grant program for state and local law enforcement agencies.

• $214.5 million for initiatives to address sexual assault kit and other DNA evidence backlogs.

• $360 million for Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act programs, including $102.5 million for Drug Courts and Veterans Treatment Courts to combat the opioid and heroin epidemic.

• $90 million for Second Chance Act grants to reduce recidivism for adults released from jail by offering substance abuse treatment, employment assistance, and other rehabilitation services.

• $32 million for COPS Office Anti-Heroin Task Forces grants and $8 million for COPS Office Anti-Methamphetamine Task Forces grants.

Other DOJ programs funded by this section include:

• Project Safe Neighborhoods, which focuses on combating violent crime, would be fully funded with $50 million.

• STOP School Violence Act programs would be fully funded with $100 million.

• The Crime Victims Fund (CVF) would receive $4.4 billion for victims and victims services, equal to the amount from the prior year. Of the total, $10 million would be reserved for auditing grants made from the Fund while 5% would be set aside to improve services for tribal victims of crime.

SCIENCE

National Aeronautics and Space Agency (NASA): $21.3 billion would be provided for NASA in FY2019, an increase of $587 million from the prior year, to support human and robotic space exploration. Funding would provide for the following activities:

• $5.3 billion would go to exploration, an increase of $549 million from the prior year, including $2.15 billion for the Space Launch System, $1.35 billion for the Orion crewed spacecraft, and $504 million to start development of the Lunar Orbital Platform.

• $6.4 billion would go to scientific research, an increase of $179 million from the prior year. Of the total, $1.9 billion would go to Earth science, $2.2 billion to planetary science, $1.5 billin for astrophysics, and $720 million for heliophysics.

• $725 million would be provided for aeronautics, an increase of $40 million, to support ongoing work on aeronautics x-vehicles, advanced research into aeronautics materials, and further research on unmanned aerial systems and unmanned traffic management.

• $933 million for space technology, an increase of $173 million, to advance projects in the early stages of development that are expected to eventually demonstrate capabilities needed for future space exploration.

• $110 million for NASA’s education programs under a newly named Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Opportunities activity. Within the total, grants for space would total $44 million while NASA’s Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) would receive $21 million.

National Science Foundation (NSF): $8.1 billion would be provided for the NSF, an increase of $301 million, to provide for basic research across scientific disciplines and to support the development of effective STEM programs. Specifically, it’d provide:

• $222 million in additional funding relative to the prior year for education activities.

• $177 million for EPSCoR, an increase of $6 million.

• $89.2 million for the design and construction of three Regional Class Research Vessels, with $60.5 million dedicated to the start of the third ship to give the NSF research vessels in the Gulf of Mexico and the East and West coasts.

RELATED AGENCIES

• The Legal Services Corporation would receive $410 million, an amount equal to the prior year, which provides civil legal aid in high-need areas through a competitive grant process.

• The International Trade Commission would receive $95 million, an increase of $1 million, to provide Congress and the president with impartial advice on U.S. international trade policy.

• Office of the U.S. Trade Representative would receive $73 million, the same as the prior year, to continue its work as the federal government’s lead negotiator for trade agreements and coordinator of enforcement actions.

MISCELLANEOUS

Oversight and Accountability: This section would call for several accountability and oversight measures, including provisions that would:

• Require the appropriate Inspectors General to conduct random audits of grant funding to find waste, fraud, and abuse.

• Establish an early warning system on cost overruns and requiring agencies to notify the Appropriations Committee when costs grow more than 10 percent.

• Prohibit grants and contracts to tax frauds.

• Require agencies to report conference spending to their Inspector General.

• Require all departments and agencies to link all contracts with award fees to successful acquisition outcomes, and prohibit the use of funds to pay for award or incentive fees for contractors with below satisfactory performance.

• Require each agency to report on all efforts made to address duplication identified by the annual Government Accountability Office duplication reports, along with challenges and legal barriers that could help agencies further reduce duplication.

Argument in favor

This bipartisan bill would support vital federal law enforcement activities, job training programs, and promote trade, in addition to funding scientific research and space exploration.

Argument opposed

This bill doesn’t do enough to fund vital scientific research, job training, and criminal justice programs. Alternatively, it doesn’t do enough to reduce spending.

Impact

The Departments of Commerce, Justice, and Science.

Cost of S. 3072

A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Senate Commerce, Justice, and Science Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Jerry Moran (R-KS) said of this funding package:

“This bipartisan bill achieves an appropriate balance between fiscal responsibility and investing in our future by supporting law enforcement, national security interests, economic development and scientific innovation. Sen. Shaheen and I have worked in an open and transparent manner to address the many important priorities within our jurisdiction, and I urge my colleagues to support this bill when it is considered by the Senate.”

This legislation passed the Senate Appropriations Committee on a 30-1 vote.

Media:

• Senate Appropriations Committee