Fiscal Year 2025 Appropriations Process

The Congressional Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25) Appropriations Process is getting underway for the fiscal year that begins October 1. House Appropriations Committee Chair Tom Cole released the topline allocations for the 12 subcommittees. House Republicans propose a 6 percent cut to non-defense programs, while increasing military spending by about 1 percent.  A $40.8 billion cut to the departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education is of concern to Goodwill.

The proposal departs from an agreement included in last year’s Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA) to avoid defaulting on the nation’s debt. The FRA prescribes a 1 percent increase to defense and nondefense discretionary spending in FY25.

The next step is for each of the subcommittees to markup their respective bills, before moving them on to the full Appropriations Committee and then the House floor. The House releases the text of spending bills 24 hours before subcommittee markups.

The tentative timeline endeavors to pass all 12 funding bills in June and July, before Congress leaves town for the August recess. The Labor-HHS-Education is slated to be considered in the subcommittee on June 27, the full committee on July 10, and on the floor for a vote in the House the week of July 29.

Similar to the President’s budget request, the totals being discussed are only proposals. The FY24 funding bill that ultimately became law largely rejected cuts proposed last year. Ultimately, Congress must approve a FY2025 spending package that the Democratically controlled Senate and White House agree to. Senate appropriators have yet to announce their proposed topline numbers or markup schedule. Final negotiations with Senate leaders and the White House are not expected to begin in earnest until after the election. In the meantime, a continuing resolution is expected to pass before funding expires on September 30 to avoid a government shutdown.

Stay tuned for additional updates as the process unfolds and ways in which you can advocate on behalf of Goodwill and the people we serve.