Title: A First Glance at the Obama Budget

Author: Sherry Greenberg

Date: February 01, 2010 10:05:53 PM or Mon, 01 February 2010 22:05:53

Summary: Yesterday, President Obama released his first real federal budget.  Although the FY 2010 budget was released after President Obama took office, it as largely just an edited version of what the Bush Office of Management and Budget prepared.
 
One early issue of note to California is that President Obama requested $330 million for SCAAP funding.  SCAAP reimburses states and localities for the costs of incarcerating undocumented felons.  California typically receives forty percent of the overall federal SCAAP funding.  While $330 million is a drop in the bucket compared to California's related costs and is shy of the fully authorized amount, it represents a move in the right direction.  The Bush administration typically zero-funded SCAAP.  Hopefully, our Congressional delegation can work to up the amount of SCAAP funds that are appropriated as the process unfolds in Congress.

Body: Yesterday, President Obama released his first real federal budget.  Although the FY 2010 budget was released after President Obama took office, it as largely just an edited version of what the Bush Office of Management and Budget prepared.
 
One early issue of note to California is that President Obama requested $330 million for SCAAP funding.  SCAAP reimburses states and localities for the costs of incarcerating undocumented felons.  California typically receives forty percent of the overall federal SCAAP funding.  While $330 million is a drop in the bucket compared to California's related costs and is shy of the fully authorized amount, it represents a move in the right direction.  The Bush administration typically zero-funded SCAAP.  Hopefully, our Congressional delegation can work to up the amount of SCAAP funds that are appropriated as the process unfolds in Congress.
 
Many of our Congressional representatives share the views articulated by Congresswoman Linda Sanchez this afternoon: "I commend President Obama’s plan to include SCAAP funding in the 2011 Budget. . .    I am pleased to see President Obama responding to Congressional priorities.  It is important that California taxpayers don’t bear the entire burden of housing criminal aliens, when it should be the responsibility of the federal government.”
 
The National Conference of State Legislators (NCSL) prepared the following quick synopsis of some key human service provisions of the Obama budget.  A number of these budget items respond to concerns raised by California's Congressional delegation and California's state legislators.  Governor Schwarzenegger should take note, that even in a time of tight federal budgeting and a discretionary budget freeze, President Obama chose to increase aid to many of our neediest, rather than balance the budget on their backs.
 
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CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT
The budget proposes to extend the ARRA provision to allow states to use federal child support incentives funds as state match for federal child support funding for one year.  There is also a $2 million proposed increase in grants available to support and facilitate non-custodial parents' access and visitation of their children
 
TEMPORARY ASSSISTANCE TO NEEDY FAMILIES (TANF)
The budget asks for a one year extension of funding for the TANF block grant.  There are no major policy proposals but a one year continuation.   This means that the President is not proposing a welfare reform (TANF )reauthorization this year.  Authorization for the TANF program was scheduled to expire on September 30, 2010.  The TANF block grant, TANF contingency fund and TANF Supplemental grants are extended through FY2011
 
TEMPORARY ASSSISTANCE TO NEEDY FAMILIES (TANF) Contingency Fund (“regular contingency fund”)
The budget assumes a cap on contingency fund obligations for FY2011 to reflect the one year extension.    The fund, which while available through FY2010, was completely obligated by December 2009.  A legislative proposal would reauthorize the contingency fund for five years at $1.855 billion in FY2011 and FY2016 and limit FY2011 obligations to 20 percent of that amount.
 
TEMPORARY ASSSISTANCE TO NEEDY FAMILIES (TANF) Emergency Contingency Fund (ECF)
The budget  provides  $2.5 B for a new TANF ECF in FY2011.  The current TANF ECF, created by ARRA , expires on September 30, 2010 and is not extended.  All remaining funding in the ARRA TANF ECF would revert to the Treasury.  A legislative proposal would expand the allowable use of the current TANF ECF to include employment services and allow for 100% rather than 80% reimbursement for state expenditures for subsidized employment.
 
LOW INCOME HOME ENERGY ASSISTANCE (LIHEAP)
Includes $3.3 billion for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).  Proposes a trigger mechanism to provide automatic increase in energy assistance whenever there is a spike in energy costs or increase in food stamp recipients.  It would reduced the block grant portion of the appropriation from $4.5 billion in FY 2010 to $2.5 billion in FY2011.  The Budget would increase the amount of emergency contingency funds available from $590.3 million to $790 million. The Administration has estimated that the trigger would result in approximately $2 billion being released in FY 2011, which,  if released in full, will result in a net increase in LIHEAP funding from $5.1 billion in FY 2010 to $5.3 billion in FY 2011.
 
FOOD STAMPS/SUPPLEMENTAL NUTRITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM (SNAP)
The budget proposes to raise the current SNAP/food stamp asset limit to $10,000 from $2,000 per household ($3,000 for households with a disabled or elderly family member).  It also continues the ARRA provision to allow able-bodied workers without dependents to be eligible for food stamps.
 
HEALTHY FOOD FINANCING
The budget proposes a $50 million at  USDA for a new $400 million "Healthy Foods Financing Initiative" at USDA, Treasury and HHS to bring grocery stores and other healthy food retailers to underserved communities.
 
NATIONAL ASSET LIMIT CHANGE FOR ALL PROGRAMS
The budget proposes a national asset limit floor for eligibility for multiple programs, including entitlement programs, of $10,000. 
 
CHILD NUTRITION/WIC
The budget proposes a $1 billion increase for child nutrition.   WIC is increased by $351 million.
 
EARNED INCOME TAX CREDIT
The budget proposes to make permanent the provision, adopted in ARRA, that temporarily increased the EITC for working families with three or more children and the threshold for the phase-out range for all married couples filing a joint return.  It recommends the elimination of the Advance Earned Income Tax Credit.
 
FMAP FOR CHILD WELFARE EXPENDITURES
The President proposes a temporary 6.2 percentage point increase in the FMAP used to determine the federal match for maintenance payments for foster care, adoption assistance and kinship guardianship through December 2010.  This continues the provision in ARRA for six additional months.
 
CHILD CARE
Funding for the child care and development fund is $6.6 billion for FY2011 under the President’s request.  This would be an increase of $1.6 billion over FY2010.  The increase includes $800 million in the child care entitlement and $800 million in the child care development block grant.  The proposal also calls for mandatory child care funding to be adjusted for inflation in the years after FY2011.  It also calls for reauthorization of both child care funding streams.  Further information about maintenance of effort and matching requirements is not included in the budget documents"

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