President Outlines Proposals to Restore America’s Global Standing and Confront 21st Century Security Challenges

The Biden-Harris Administration today submitted to Congress the President’s priorities for fiscal year 2022 discretionary spending. The President’s 2022 discretionary request includes $63.5 billion for International Programs, a $6.8 billion or 12 percent increase from the 2021 enacted level. Within this total, the discretionary request includes $58.4 billion for the Department of State and USAID, an increase of $5.4 billion or 10 percent. The funding request invests in the core foundations of our country’s strength and advances key State Department and USAID priorities, including working alongside and in partnership with other nations to address the pandemic and climate change as well as the growing ambitions of China and global threats to democracy.

The President’s FY 2022 discretionary request:

  • Ensures We are Better Prepared to Prevent, Detect, and Respond to Future Biological Threats and Pandemics. The discretionary request includes $10 billion for global health programs, of which nearly $1 billion would fund global health security programs, an increase of over $800 million beyond the 2021 enacted level. This investment will expand American leadership in global health security in order to address longer-term impacts and work to prevent, prepare for, and respond to future infectious disease outbreaks, whether naturally occurring, accidental, or deliberate.
  • Reestablishes U.S. Leadership on Climate Change. The discretionary request meets the climate emergency head-on by including $2.5 billion for international climate programs across the U.S. Government, more than four times the 2021 enacted level, to rally the world against this urgent threat, one that cannot be defeated by a single nation alone. The discretionary request includes $1.2 billion for the Green Climate Fund, which supports climate adaptation and emissions mitigation in developing countries, and $691 million for the Department of State and USAID to assist developing countries adapt to climate disruptions, expand clean energy production, and reduce landscape emissions. Additionally, the discretionary request will also provide $485 million to support other multilateral climate initiatives, including at the Department of Treasury.
  • Revitalizes Collaborative U.S. Leadership in Central America. The discretionary request invests $861 million in the region as a first step towards a four-year commitment of $4 billion. As part of a comprehensive strategy to drive systemic reform while addressing the root causes of irregular migration from Central America to the United States, it is critical to revitalize U.S. leadership in Central America.
  • Restores America’s Global Standing and Promotes Democracy and Human Rights. Global leadership includes meeting our commitments to international peacekeeping missions and other UN commitments, which includes paying our dues on time and in full, reversing the chronic underfunding of, and arrears accrued for, critical programs during the previous Administration. The request includes nearly $2 billion for UN peacekeeping missions, including $300 million to begin paying down arrears. The discretionary request also provides funding to support our commitments to international organizations, including the World Health Organization, the UN Population Fund, and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, while continuing to press for needed reforms. The discretionary request includes a significant increase in resources to advance human rights and democratic values, fight corruption, stem the tide of democratic backsliding, and defend against authoritarianism. It also advances the Administration’s commitment to a sustainable two-state solution in the Middle East and restores economic and humanitarian assistance to the West Bank and Gaza.
  • Revitalizes the National Security Workforce. The discretionary request also invests in strengthening a diverse and inclusive diplomatic corps. Increasing the size of the Foreign Service and Civil Service for the Department of State and the United States Agency for International Development will deepen our expertise and expand diversity so that we have the workforce we need to advance U.S. interests and effectively counter threats. Continued investment in technology and training will enable our workforce to fully realize their global potential.
  • Reestablishes U.S. Moral Leadership on Refugee and Humanitarian Issues. The discretionary request includes the resources necessary to rebuild our badly damaged refugee admissions program in FY 2022 and support up to 125,000 admissions. It also includes over $10 billion in humanitarian assistance to support vulnerable people abroad, including refugees, conflict victims, and other displaced persons.

These discretionary investments reflect only one element of the President’s broader agenda. In the coming months, the Administration will release the President’s Budget, which will present a unified, comprehensive plan to address the overlapping crises we face in a fiscally and economically responsible way.

For more information on the President’s FY 2022 discretionary funding request, please visit: https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/FY-2022-Discretionary-Request/.

U.S. Department of State

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