Following approval by the U.S. Senate on December 13, Congress completed final action on a consolidated $446.8 billion omnibus appropriations bill (HR 3288) for Fiscal Year 2010. The measure was sent to President Obama on December 15 for his expected signature. The measure aggregates six major funding bills, including appropriations for: Transportation, Housing and Urban Development ($68 million); Commerce, Justice, and Science ($64 billion); Financial Services ($24 billion); Labor, Health and Human Services and Education ($163 billion); Military Construction and Veterans Affairs ($78 billion) and; State and Foreign Operations ($48 billion).
The package includes funding for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and its programs at a level 12% above the FY 2009 appropriation. The Defense Appropriation (HR 3326) is the one remaining spending measure yet to be approved. It is being held in reserve as a vehicle for other end-of-session Democratic priorities, including aid for the unemployed and other expiring policies.
A table listing FY2010 funding levels compared with FY2009 appropriations for key housing programs is available at HousingOnline.com.
