Federal Funding Update – Call to Action to Support FY2019 Funding

By
Christopher Fisher
White House

Welcome back to the sixth installment of MANY’s Government Relations blog series. Today, we’ll be discussing the House and Senate as they are in the midst of their annual appropriations processes to determine funding levels for federal agencies and programs in Fiscal Year 2019. The House and Senate are in the midst of their annual appropriations processes to determine funding levels for federal agencies and programs in Fiscal Year 2019.  Now is a critical time to weigh in with your Senators and Representatives in support of funding that is important to your communities. Below we have outlined the status and prospects for funding of the Youth Mentoring Grants (YMG), the Homeless Youth Demonstration Program (YHDP), and the Runaway and Homeless Youth (RHY) programs.

Youth Mentoring Grants

MANY is pleased to report that the House has recommended increased funding of 6.4% for Youth Mentoring Grants (YMG) in Fiscal Year 2019.

  House FY19 vs. FY18 Senate FY19 vs. FY18
Youth Mentoring Grants $100 million + 6.4% Pending Subcommittee vote week of June 11*  

The Senate will formalize its recommendation for YMG next week. There is still time for you to call or write your Senator to ensure that the Senate provides $100 million for Youth Mentoring Grants in FY19.  Members of the Senate Commerce-Justice-Science Subcommittee (CJS) will be particularly interested in hearing from constituents in their states about the impact of YMG programs as the CJS Subcommittee has jurisdiction over YMG funding.  If your organization is represented by any of the following Senators, please call them today and ask them to support Youth Mentoring Grants in FY2019!

Senate Commerce-Justice-Science Subcommittee Members:

Homeless Youth Demonstration Program

  House FY19 vs. FY18 Senate FY19 vs. FY18
Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (not included)        -$80m Final number TBD week of June 4  

The Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP) is a set-aside within the larger Homeless Assistance Grants (HAG) program, administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).  The U.S. House of Representatives did not recommend setting aside additional money for YHDP in Fiscal Year 2019, although it did provide $33 million in additional funding for the Homeless Assistance Grants overall. Funding for YHDP in FY19 will be dependent upon a strong show of support for the program in the Senate. Members of the Senate Transportation-Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee will be particularly interested in hearing from constituents about the impact of the YHDP demos as they have jurisdiction over the program’s funding. The Senate will be finalizing its recommendation for YHDP the week of June 4. If your organization is represented by any of the following Senators, please call them today and ask them to support the Homeless Youth Demonstration Program in FY2019! Senate Transportation-Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee:

Runaway and Homeless Youth

  House FY19 vs. FY18 Senate FY19 vs. FY18
Runaway and Homeless Youth TBD TBD TBD TBD

The Runaway and Homeless Youth (RHY) programs (including the Basic Center Program, Transitional Living Program, Street Outreach, and Maternity Group Homes) are funded through the Labor-Health and Human Services-Education Subcommittee (LHHS).  Neither the House nor the Senate have released initial numbers for RHY programs in Fiscal Year 2019, however, we anticipate that RHY funding recommendations will be decided by mid- to late-June.  If your organization is represented by a Member of Congress who sits on either the House or Senate Labor-Health and Human Services-Education Subcommittees, now is an excellent time to contact them regarding the importance of RHY programs in their districts and states. Members of the House Labor-Health and Human Services-Education Subcommittee:

Members of the Senate Labor-Health and Human Services-Education Subcommittee:

Additional Background: Why are there different funding numbers for the House and Senate?

The House and Senate each have their own subcommittee processes to determine funding for federal programs. Both chambers independently move funding legislation through their respective Appropriations Subcommittees. The parallel systems mean that at this stage in the appropriations process any given federal program may have two different potential funding levels: The House’s recommended funding, and the Senate’s recommended funding. The ultimate goal of the appropriations system is to reconcile the differences in funding between the two chambers prior to the start of a new fiscal year. However, that reconciliation mechanism will not take place until later in the year – possibly in September, but more likely in November or December after the elections. At this point in time, MANY and its members are still working hard to educate Members of Congress in the House and Senate as to the importance of youth service funding in their districts and states. The higher the level of support for youth service programs in each chamber, the greater the likelihood of positive funding outcomes at the end of the appropriations process.  

Focus areas
Funding
Policy Advocacy

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