White House Releases Proposed Budget for FY 2023, 4.6% Pay Raise for Federal Employees
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President Biden’s $5.8 trillion budget proposal for fiscal year (FY) 2023 aims to give every Cabinet department a budget increase while reducing the federal deficit that has skyrocketed in recent years.
In the White House’s proposal, discretionary funds would amount to $1.6 trillion, including $813 billion for defense and $769 billion for domestic spending. In contrast, the FY 2022 omnibus spending bill (P.L. 117-103) included $782 billion for defense and $730 billion for domestic spending.
To prepare for future pandemics, the administration's proposed budget would provide health agencies with $81.7 billion in mandatory funding over five years. As part of its plan to increase disease countermeasures, the Biden Administration plans to set up a free vaccine program for adults without health insurance, modeled after the current program for children. It plans also to spend $975 million on boosting the nation's stockpile of medical supplies.
Commerce will see the largest department percentage increase in funding at 31 percent, rising the Department’s budget from $8.9 billion to $11.7 billion. Following closely behind the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) would gain 29 percent from $111.1 billion to $135.2 billion in funding.
Among the figures is a proposal to raise pay for federal civilian and military employees by 4.6 percent.
“If enacted, the 4.6 percent average pay increase would the largest since 2002. The amount tracks with recent increases in private-sector pay and the expected military pay increase for the second consecutive year,” stated Ken Thomas, National President of the National Active and Retired Federal Employees (NARFE), “Keeping up with private-sector pay growth is essential to maintaining the federal government’s ability to recruit and retain a highly qualified and effective workforce.”
The administration’s Office of Personnel Management (OPM) budget justification also includes several legislative proposals, including: critical position pay; critical skills incentive; increase to special rate limitation; new appointment pay setting; incentive awards authority increase; expansion of FEDVIP to tribal organizations and certain tribal employers, children up to age 26; expend Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) to tribal colleges and universities; and require coverage of three primary care visits and three behavioral health visits without cost-sharing.
Commerce & Tax Administration
The Department of Commerce seeks to expand domestic manufacturing and climate initiatives, requesting $11.7 billion in discretionary funding, a 31.2 percent increase from the FY 2021.
In the proposal, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) would receive $2.15 billion, with the agency's Enforcement Division receiving $53 million.
The Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) budget would rise by 18 percent to $14.1 billion under the new budget proposal. The White House proposed a $2.2 billion increase to improve the taxpayer experience and promote fair and equitable taxation. The budget also allocates $310 million, a 39 percent increase, to modernize the IRS's outdated computer systems.
Energy, Interior & Agriculture
The Biden Administration proposes to fund the Department of Energy at $48.2 billion to develop clean power projects and research electric grids to meet the agency's climate goals. The funding includes a proposed $9.2 billion dedicated to clean energy research, development, and demonstration projects.
The Department of the Interior's top priorities in its fiscal 2023 budget request include climate change, racial equity, tribal justice, renewable energy, and wildfire risk reduction. The administration requested a 19 percent funding boost and an additional $2.9 billion for its discretionary budget, amounting to $17.5 billion.
President Biden requests $28.5 billion for the Agriculture Department for programs promoting clean energy, addressing housing insecurity, and deploying broadband in rural areas. Almost every aspect of the Department's proposal addresses climate change, including programs related to nutrition and farming research.
The Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) funding would reach its highest level ever at $11.9 billion in the proposed budget. A significant amount of this funding is allocated to environmental justice and long-standing air, water, and chemical programs.
In addition, President Biden proposed allocating $1.6 billion to the Green Climate Fund-an entity of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that assists developing countries with climate and clean energy efforts.
Justice, Defense & Homeland Security
Under Attorney General Merrick Garland, the Justice Department has prioritized policies that deal with violent crime, civil rights, among other issues. The proposed budget of $37.7 billion provides funding to expand the staff of gun trafficking strike forces and the U.S. Marshals Service; to regulate the firearms industry; and to prosecute violent crimes at the federal level.
Among the $813.3 billion national security request is the defense budget, which also includes the Department of Energy’s nuclear arsenal and the Federal Bureau of Investigations' (FBI) national security functions. The proposed $773 billion Defense Department budget hinges on an increase in spending on nuclear modernization and research and development, while cutting back on troops, and retiring aging ships and planes.
The Department of Homeland Security funding would see a 5.4 percent increase in funding compared with fiscal 2021 enacted levels, which agencies were using with some adjustments before passage of fiscal 2022 spending law this month. The department's discretionary funding of $56.7 billion would support counterterrorism, border security, and disaster preparedness and response efforts.
The Nonprofit Security Grant Program, aimed at preventing future attacks on places of worship following the Colleyville synagogue hostage-taking, would receive $360 million. The budget would also bolster U.S. Border Patrol staffing by 300 agents and decrease the size of Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) detention capacity by 5,000 beds.
