Financial services and general government funding for fiscal 2012 will take a major hit if a House Appropriations Committee funding bill covering agencies such as the Treasury Department, Office of Personnel Management and General Services Administration, passes without any significant changes.

The bill, H.R. 2434 (.pdf), approved by the committee July 7, would provide $20 billion in funding to agencies under its jurisdiction in fiscal 2012--approximately $2 billion, or 9 percent below fiscal 2011 funding levels. That amount is also close to $6 billion below President Obama's request.

The proposed bill would allocate $319 million for salaries and expenses of the Federal Communications Commission for fiscal year 2012, according to a report (.pdf) accompanying the bill--$16.8 million less than fiscal 2011 and $39.8 million less than the request amount.

The committee recommends a fiscal 2012 appropriation of $284 million for the Federal Trade Commission, which is $7.3 million less than fiscal 2011 and $42 million less than the president's request. The proposed fiscal 2012 appropriations bill would grant the Office of Personnel Management $98 million, which sustains the fiscal 2011 funding level but falls short of the president's request by $2.2 million. Under the bill, the National Archives and Records Administration would receive $360 million, which is $57 million less than fiscal 2011 and $48 million less than the president's request.

The proposed cuts are significant and affect some of the administration's marquee initiatives. In a July 13 statement of administration policy (.pdf), the White House threatened to veto the bill if it passes. Among several points of contention, the SAP finds fault with language that challenges last year's Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 111-148) and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Public Law 111-203).

As it is currently presented, the bill would prohibit funds that would allow individuals to buy health insurance and disallow the transfer of funds to the Internal Revenue Service.

"These sections would prevent both appropriated and transferred funds from the Department of Health and Human Services from being used by the department to administer the law," according to the Office of Management and Budget statement.

The bill also would limit the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, an agency mandated by Dodd-Frank, to $200 million in funding. Additionally, Rep. Lynn Westmoreland (R-Ga.) offered an amendment July 14 that would disallow the board of governors of the Federal Reserve to transfer any funds to CFPB and ban the agency from obligating any funds in fiscal 2012.

The committee recommends a total appropriation of $640 million for the Executive Office of the President, which is $66 million less than the fiscal 2011 level and $100 million than the president's request. The diminished EOP resources would "significantly impact the EOP's role in assisting the president in carrying out his constitutional duties as head of the executive branch," says the SAP.

If the bill is to be enacted, the IRS's taxpayer services will receive $2 billion, which is $108.516 million less than fiscal 2011 and $179 million less than the president's request.  According to OMB's statement, the bill would force the IRS to cut 4,200 full-time employees.

The committee recommends appropriating $7 billion for the General Services Administration's federal building fund, which is $373.7 million less than fiscal 2011 and $2.3 billion than the request. OMB said GSA would not have the resources necessary to operate "the existing GSA buildings portfolio, including lease payments to private lessors, utility payments, and janitorial services," under the suggested funding amount, the SAP says.

For more:
- see H.R. 2434 (.pdf)
- see the THOMAS bill summary and status page
- see the statement of administration policy (.pdf)

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