Department of State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2008

The Department of State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2008 would appropriate funds for programs and initiatives that represent the non-military priorities of the U.S. across the world.

Military aid
In the bill, military aid is included through programs that provide loans and grants to purchase U.S. military aid and services, training and support of peacekeeping operations and anti-drug efforts. The bill supports the U.S. policy began by the Bush administration to deny economic and military aid to countries who adhere to the International Criminal Court requirement that those to be brought to trial for genocide and crimes against humanity be turned over to the ICC. The U.S. policy is to deny aid unless those countries agree not to apply the requirement to U.S. personnel in the country.

Various countries would be denied military or other aid. Cuba, Libya, North Korea, Iran, Syria and countries seized by military coups would be denied direct loans, credits, insurance and guarantees of the Export-Import Bank or its agents.

Funds for the president
Funds are also appropriated to the president for a variety of programs including disaster and health aid, the provision of peacekeeping support and grants and loans to purchase U.S. military aid. The Millennium Challenge Corporation, President Bush’s program to provide economic and other aid, is funded at $1.2 billion less that the president requested. Sudan would receive added humanitarian aid and peacekeeping funds for Darfur.

New programs
A new initiative for a strategy to improve drinking water in priority countries is included. A new program, Global Resources and Opportunities for Women to Thrive (GROWTH), is intended to enhance “economic opportunities for very poor, poor, and low-income women in developing countries.” The program focuses on increasing women-owned enterprise development, property rights for women, access to financial services and increasing women in leadership in implementing organizations such as indigenous nongovernmental organizations, community-based organizations, and regulated financial intermediaries.

Middle East and Central Asia
Funds are limited to the Palestinian Authority with conditions centered on the type of government there, but a traditional presidential waiver (the territory must meet certain humanitarian and anti-terrorism conditions) on those restrictions continues. Afghanistan would receive no less than $1.057 billion for humanitarian, reconstruction, and related assistance. $3 million would be made available for reforestation activities. Funds would be matched, “to the maximum extent possible”, with contributions from American and Afghan businesses. $75 million would be made available to support programs that directly address the needs of Afghan women and girls, including for the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission, the Afghan Ministry of Women's Affairs, and for women-led nonprofit organizations in Afghanistan.

Iran is funded for democracy programs at $25 million.

$350 million is appropriated for programs in Pakistan, though the bill expresses concerns about human rights in Pakistan, especially women's rights, and the pace of reform on democratic governance and rule of law. $7 million in Foreign Military Financing program funds for Lebanon is recommended, while economic support funds are recommended at $45 million. The bill states that not less than $10 million should be used for scholarships and other direct support of the American educational institutions in Lebanon.



House
On June 21, 2007, the House considered the bill, sponsored by Rep. Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.). It passed, 241-178.



In late June 2007, Reps. Mark Udall (D-Colo.), Frank Wolf (R-Va.), Christopher Shays (R-Conn.), Michael McCaul (R-Texas) and Daniel Lipinski (D-Ill.) issued a letter to President Bush, urging him to reconstitute the Iraq Study Group. The bipartisan group referred to a provision included in the Foreign Operations appropriations bill passed by the House to provide $1 million to the U.S. Institute for Peace to reestablish the Iraq Study Group. The members worried whether the President would sign the bill with that amendment included. Rep. Udall stated that allowing the group to update their report would give the President, Congress, and the public an independent perspective on the situation in Iraq to compare with the report due by General Petraeus in September.

Senate
Following the August recess, the Senate heavily amended the bill. Country specific amendments included $75 million for democracy programs in Iran, increasing funds through an offsetting cut for democracy radio and television broadcasts to Cuba, and providing for aerial eradication of cocoa in Colombia and funds for alternative crops. A US-Egypt Friendship Endowment to improve exchanges between the countries was created. Funds to Iraq would be prohibited until the State Department reported on the Iraq Government efforts to fight corruption and the Committees on Appropriations were given, for the purposes of conducting oversight, access to State Department data on programs in Iraq.

Spending would be increased or minimum funding amounts set and various certifications and reports were ordered that required in-country police, governments and military factions be transparent or not party to corruption and human rights violations. Those countries included Iraq, Colombia, Bolivia, the Western Sahara region, Nepal, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Indonesia, and countries that recruited child soldiers.

International Military Education and Training for Guatemala was limited to the Guatemalan Air Force and Navy, though only if the Secretary of State certified that the Guatemalan Air Force and Navy were respecting human rights and were cooperating with civilian judicial investigations and prosecutions of military personnel who had been credibly alleged to have committed violations of human rights.

Regarding world organizations, an effort to reduce US dues to the UN, from the 27.1% in the bill to last year's 25%, failed, as did an effort to prohibit funds to the World Bank for control of Malaria. Both amendments were in response to the belief that there was a lack of clarity in those organization's management of money and questionable program results.

Transparency in accounting was called for in the Global Fund related to fight HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria, foreign assistance spending in general and the Secretary of State was directed to establish and maintain on the home page of the State website a direct link to the website for the Office of Inspector General of the Department of State. Peace Corps funding would be increased by $10 million.

An amendment to prohibit the use of funds by international organizations, agencies, and entities that requires the registration of, or tax guns owned by U.S. citizens was agreed to 81 to 10.

An effort to prevent contributions to organizations that perform or promote abortion as a method of family planning was defeated 41 - 53. An amendment prohibiting funds to organizations that supported coercive abortions passed 48 to 45. An amendment to revise the bill language and allow for funds to non-governmental organizations that would work to aid women and children victims of human rights violations because of pregnancy or rape and to reverse foreign country programs such as coercive abortion succeeded 53 to 41.