36-627
2007
110TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION
Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
110-231
DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS BILL, 2008
R E P O R T
of the
COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
together with
MINORITY AND ADDITIONAL VIEWS
[to accompany h.r. 3043]
[Graphic image not available]
July 13, 2007- Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed
DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION,
AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS BILL, 2008
36-627
110TH CONGRESS
Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session
110-231
--DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS BILL, 2008
JULY 13, 2007- Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed
Mr. OBEY, from the Committee on Appropriations, submitted the following
R E P O R T
together with
MINORITY AND ADDITIONAL VIEWS
[To accompany H.R. 3043]
The Committee on Appropriations submits the following report in explanation of the accompanying bill making appropriations for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services (except the Food and Drug Administration, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry and the Indian Health Service), and Education, Committee for Purchase from People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled, Corporation for National and Community Service, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission, Institute of Museum and Library Services, Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, National Council on Disability, National Labor Relations Board, National Mediation Board, Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission, Railroad Retirement Board, and the Social Security Administration for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2008, and for other purposes.
INDEX TO BILL AND REPORTPage number
Bill / Report
Summary of Estimates and Appropriations / 3
General Summary of the Bill / 3
Administration-Directed Spending / 4
Crosscutting Initiatives / 6
Title I--Department of Labor:
Employment and Training Administration / 2 / 34
Employee Benefits Security Administration / 12 / 45
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation / 12 / 46
Employment Standards Administration / 13 / 47
Occupational Safety and Health Administration / 19 / 51
Mine Safety and Health Administration / 23 / 54
Bureau of Labor Statistics / 24 / 55
Office of Disability Employment Policy / 25 / 56
Departmental Management / 25 / 56
Veterans Employment and Training / 27 / 61
Office of the Inspector General / 28 / 61
General provisions / 28 / 62
Title II--Department of Health and Human Services:
Health Resources and Services Administration / 33 / 63
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention / 38 / 96
National Institutes of Health / 41 / 125
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration / 48 / 174
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality / 50 / 183
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services / 50 / 185
Administration for Children and Families / 54 / 189
Administration on Aging / 62 / 204
Office of the Secretary / 62 / 208
Office of the Inspector General / 64 / 214
Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund / 65 / 215
General provisions / 67 / 219
Title III--Department of Education:
Education for the Disadvantaged / 77 / 221
Impact Aid / 78 / 228
School Improvement Programs / 79 / 229
Indian Education / 81 / 234
Innovation and Improvement / 81 / 235
Safe Schools and Citizenship Education / 83 / 244
English Language Acquisition / 84 / 247
Special Education / 84 / 248
Rehabilitation Services and Disability Research / 85 / 250
Special Institutions for Persons With Disabilities / 86 / 253
Career and Technical Education and Adult Education / 86 / 254
Student Financial Assistance / 89 / 257
Student Aid Administration / 89 / 259
Higher Education / 90 / 259
Howard University / 91 / 270
College Housing and Academic Facilities Loans / 91 / 270
Historically Black College and University Capital Financing / 91 / 270
Institute of Education Sciences / 92 / 271
Departmental Management / 92 / 274
Office for Civil Rights / 92 / 275
Office of the Inspector General / 93 / 275
General provisions / 93 / 275
Title IV--Related agencies:
Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled / 97 / 276
Corporation for National and Community Service / 97 / 276
Corporation for Public Broadcasting / 103 / 279
Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service / 104 / 280
Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission / 106 / 280
Institute of Museum and Library Services / 106 / 280
Medicare Payment Advisory Commission / 106 / 282
National Commission on Libraries and Information Science / 283
National Council on Disability / 107 / 283
National Labor Relations Board / 107 / 283
National Mediation Board / 108 / 284
Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission / 108 / 284
Railroad Retirement Board / 108 / 284
Social Security Administration / 110 / 285
Title V--General Provisions:
House of Representatives Report Requirements / 289
SUMMARY OF ESTIMATES AND APPROPRIATIONS
The following table compares on a summary basis the appropriations including trust funds for fiscal year 2007, the budget request for fiscal year 2008 and the Committee recommendation for fiscal year 2008 in the accompanying bill.
2008 LABOR, HHS, EDUCATION APPROPRIATIONS BILL
[In millions of dollars]
------
Fiscal year-- 2008 committee compared to--
2007 comparable 2008 budget 2008 committee 2007 comparable 2008 budget
------
Department of Labor $14,691 $13,942 $14,891 +$200 +$949
Advances 2,531 2,525 2,525 -6 0
Department of Health and Human Services 422,185 472,056 477,406 +55,221 +5,350
Advances 69,456 71,457 71,457 +2,001 0
Department of Education 60,310 59,099 62,971 +2,661 +3,872
Advances 15,034 15,034 17,004 +1,970 +1,970
Related Agencies 48,774 52,492 52,659 +3,885 +167
Advances 17,210 14,800 15,220 -1,990 +420
Grand Total, current year 545,960 597,589 607,927 +61,967 +10,338
Advances 104,231 103,816 106,206 +1,975 +2,390
Current year total using 302(b) scorekeeping 545,834 596,394 607,428 +61,594 +11,034
Mandatory 401,224 455,478 455,680 +54,456 +202
Discretionary 144,610 140,916 151,748 +7,138 +10,832
------
PROGRAM LEVEL DISCRETIONARY
[In millions of dollars]
------
Fiscal year-- 2008 committee compared to--
2007 comparable 2008 budget 2008 committee 2007 comparable 2008 budget
------
Department of Labor $11,686 $10,964 $11,913 +$227 +$949
Department of Health and Human Services 64,054 63,195 68,344 +4,290 +5,149
Department of Education 57,473 56,225 62,068 +4,595 +5,843
Related Agencies 11,522 11,326 11,913 +391 +587
Subtotal Program Level $144,735 $141,710 $154,238 +$9,503 +$12,528
------
GENERAL SUMMARY OF THE BILL
Funding levels in the fiscal year 2008 appropriation bill for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies reflect the Committee's efforts to understand the challenges that the nation faces over the next ten years and what the nation must do to address them. While reducing the Federal deficit is a worthy goal, the nation has a number of other deficits that are equally important--deficits in worker development, safety and protection; deficits in health access, affordability and quality; and deficits in educational access and opportunity. In this bill, the
Committee makes crucial investments in priority programs that will help to begin the process of erasing these deficits over the next several years.
Bill total.--Total funding, including offsets, for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2008 is $607,428,474,000.
Discretionary programs.--For Discretionary accounts for fiscal year 2008 the bill provides $151,748,000,000, including offsets. This is $7,137,515,000 and 4.9 percent above the fiscal year 2007 comparable level.
Mandatory programs.--The bill provides $455,680,474,000 for entitlement programs in fiscal year 2008. This is $54,456,359,000 above the fiscal year 2007 comparable level. Funding requirements for entitlement programs are determined by the basic authorizing statutes. Mandatory programs include general fund support for the Medicare and Medicaid programs, Supplemental Security Income, Trade Adjustment Assistance and Black Lung payments. The following chart indicates the funding levels for the major mandatory programs in fiscal years 2007 and 2008.
MANDATORY
[Dollars in thousands]
------
Program Fiscal year 2007 Fiscal year 2008 Change
------
Department of Labor:
Federal Unemployment Benefits and Allowances $837,600 $888,700 +$51,100
Advances to the UI and other trust funds 465,000 437,000 -28,000
Special Benefits 227,000 203,000 -24,000
Special Benefits for Disabled Coal Miners 229,373 208,221 -21,152
Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Fund 102,307 104,745 +2,438
Black Lung Disability Trust Fund 1,069,546 1,068,000 -1,546
Department of Health and Human Services:
Vaccine Injury Compensation Trust Fund 55,871 57,547 +1,676
Medicaid current law benefits 155,467,869 194,109,000 +38,641,131
Medicaid State and local administration 9,881,583 10,014,716 +133,133
CMS Vaccines for Children 2,905,330 2,763,957 -141,373
Medicare Payments to Healthcare Trust Funds 176,298,480 188,828,000 +12,529,520
Welfare Payments 39,000 39,000 0
Child Support Enforcement 4,424,678 3,910,713 -513,965
Social Services Block Grant 1,700,000 1,700,000 0
Promoting Safe and Stable Families 345,000 345,000 0
Payments to States for Foster Care and Adoption 4,912,000 5,082,000 +170,000
Medical Benefits for Commissioned Officers 370,698 402,542 +31,844
Department of Education:
Vocational Rehabilitation 2,837,160 2,837,160 0
Related Agencies:
Federal Payments to the Railroad Retirement Account 150 150 0
Payments to Social Security Trust Funds 20,470 28,140 +7,670
Supplemental Security Income 37,231,000 40,738,000 +3,507,000
------
ADMINISTRATION-DIRECTED SPENDING
Directed spending.--The Committee notes that Congress has made significant reforms in the way it reviews funding for the Federal government; reforms which the Committee takes very seriously as it executes its constitutional authority. For example, the Committee has committed to reducing the number of earmarks in order to ensure that these projects are adequately vetted and evaluated. Nonetheless, earmarking or directed spending of Federal dollars does not begin with Congress. It begins with the Executive Branch.
For example, the Administration's own fiscal year 2008 request for this bill includes a number of requests to earmark funds to certain organizations. These earmark requests include: $10,000,000 for Reach Out and Read; $10,000,000 for Teach for America; $8,900,000 for the Points of Light Foundation; $4,450,000 for America's Promise; $1,774,000 for the Mind-Body Institute; and, $1,429,000 for the YMCA of America.
The Executive Branch also engages in another practice which steers or directs money to specific entities or purposes through a process of providing grants or contracts to support various activities and services. The practice of contracting has increased significantly in the past five years. For example, Department of Health and Human Services contract obligations have more than doubled from $4,970,200,000 in fiscal year 2001 to $13,199,400,000 in fiscal year 2006. The number of contract employees at HHS exceeds 32,000, about half the number of civil service employees. A significant share of these contracts was awarded on a non-competitive basis. In fiscal year 2006 alone, HHS awarded nearly 21,000 contracts worth $1,954,600,000 with less than full and open competition. In contrast, this bill is expected to limit Congressionally-directed earmarks by Members of the House of Representatives to approximately one quarter of that amount.
The Committee also notes recent audits and reports that have revealed egregious, potentially extralegal activities, which were aimed at steering funding to specific individuals and entities through non-competitive grants and contracts.
For example, between September 2006 and March 2007, the Department of Education Office of Inspector General (OIG) completed one of its most exhaustive investigations, which resulted in six separate audits of the reading first program. These audits documented efforts by the Department of Education to steer billions in reading first funds for the purchase of certain reading textbooks and assessments in order to benefit favored publishers and individuals.
In September 2006, the Department of Education OIG found that the Department's program officials strongarmed States and school districts until they selected the reading textbooks and assessments favored by Administration officials. (Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Education, Final Inspection Report, The Reading First Program's Grant Application Process (2006)). After further investigation of reading first, the OIG found that Department of Education administrators improperly promoted commercial reading programs in potential violation of Federal law (Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Education, Final Inspection Report, The Department's Administration of Selected Aspects of the Reading First Program (2007)). For example, the Madison School District in Wisconsin had substantial data demonstrating that its students were learning at the rate that reading first was aiming for. Nonetheless, the district lost its $2,000,000 reading first grant when the district would not purchase the unproven commercial reading program promoted by the Department of Education's contractors. Across the country, including in Illinois, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maine and New Jersey, States and districts with programs that were not on the Department's preferential list were either rejected for grants or pressured to change their methods even though some argued, as did Wisconsin, that their programs met the law's standard. This is the type of pressure that the OIG found to be in potential violation of Federal law.
Finally, the OIG found significant bias and conflicts of interest on the part of contractors and their subcontractors who were hired to provide unbiased technical assistance to States and school districts, potentially in violation of Federal law (Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Education, Final Inspection Report, RMC Research Corporation's Administration of Reading First Program Contracts (2007)).
Recently, ABC News reported that, after receiving millions of dollars in reading first contracts, one publisher with political connections to the Administration sold his company--once valued at $5,000,000--for $360,000,000. (ABC World News With Charles Gibson (May 2007)). Some of these same publishers and individuals continue to reap financial gains under reading first because the Administration has failed to address ongoing conflicts of interest.
The seriousness of the OIG's findings is underscored by reports that the OIG has made criminal referrals to the Justice Department as a result of these investigations.
At the same time that the Department of Education was promoting certain reading products that lacked evidence of their validity, reading programs such as Reading Recovery and Success for All with strong evidence of effectiveness, according to the Department's own what works clearinghouse, were virtually shut out of reading first. In fact, Department of Education data show that schools without Reading first funds were more likely to use Reading Recovery and Success for All--proven approaches--than were schools receiving reading first grants.