Spending for the State Department and other key international affairs programs would climb by $4.3 billion, an increase of nearly 16 percent, to $31.8 billion. State would have an increase of more than 18 percent in budget authority, for a total of $13.3 billion, with major increases set for diplomatic programs and the global initiative to fight HIV/AIDS.
International assistance would increase about 14 percent. Much of the new money is $3 billion for the Millennium Challenge Corp., a new foreign aid tool that would tie aid to countries to their meeting judicial and economic criteria.
The budget would greatly expand a new office devoted to reconstruction and stabilization in post-conflict countries, and would create a $100 million fund to quickly deploy civilian personnel to unstable regions. The president's promotion of democracy would also get a boost, with the budget for the National Endowment for Democracy doubling from to 2004 to 2006, to $80 million.
-- Glenn Kessler
The Department of Transportation's discretionary budget authority would decrease 6.7 percent, to $11.8 billion, under the president's proposal. Total budget resources, which include trust funds for certain transportation modes, would increase to $59.5 billion, from $58.7 billion.
Much of the decrease in funding comes from Bush's plan to withhold nearly all money for Amtrak, the government's passenger railroad. The administration has been trying to encourage Amtrak to reorganize itself so that it can become financially self-sustaining.
The administration's budget would provide funds for the Federal Aviation Administration to hire 1,249 new air traffic controllers, to replace those in the agency's aging workforce who are expected to retire.
-- Sara Kehaulani Goo
The Treasury Department's budget would rise about 4 percent, to $11.6 billion -- the vast majority of it going to the Internal Revenue Service.
The nation's "tax gap" between what Americans owe under the law and the amount they pay -- estimated at more than $300 billion a year -- has attracted increased attention, and the administration last week announced that it would seek $500 million to beef up IRS enforcement. The budget projects that revenue from tax enforcement will rise by $2.6 billion.
However, the $500 million is more than the increase sought for the IRS overall -- it would rise to $10.679 billion, from $10.236 billion approved for this year, but remain almost the same as the $10.674 billion Bush requested last year -- requiring the agency to shift resources from other activities, such as taxpayer service.
-- Albert B. Crenshaw
The Department of Veterans Affairs would see its discretionary spending rise $880 million, to $33.4 billion, including revenue from fees for some medical services. Most VA discretionary spending goes to health care.
In a change criticized by some veterans, the budget would more than double prescription drug co-payments for some veterans from $7 to $15, and require them to pay an annual enrollment fee of $250. VA officials said the increases, which would generate about $454 million, would apply to about 2.37 million non-disabled, higher-income veterans -- only about 1.2 million of whom use the VA health care system.
Overall, the budget would rise to $70.8 billion, including $37.4 billion in funding on entitlements, such as disability payments and rehabilitation programs.
-- Christopher Lee
