Senator Coons statement on the markup of fiscal 2025 State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Act

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), Chair of the Senate State and Foreign Operations (SFOPS) Appropriations Subcommittee and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement after the full committee markup of the fiscal year 2025 SFOPS Appropriations bill:

"The Appropriations Senate bill for the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs for fiscal year 2025 strengthens American diplomacy, bolsters our national security, and honors our commitments to partners around the world. At a time of growing instability and uncertainty, American leadership and investment in global health, humanitarian assistance, economic development, and diplomatic engagement is more important than ever. I thank Ranking Member Lindsey Graham for his commitment to this work. The bill our subcommittee produced is proof that it is still possible to forge consensus and agreement in Congress, and that values-based foreign policy that promotes American economic competitiveness, advances our global development goals, and keeps our country safe remains a bipartisan priority.

"Ultimately, all negotiations require compromise. I will continue to fight for increased funding for humanitarian assistance to address growing global challenges and ensure that development and refugee organizations are able to support needy people from the Middle East to Ukraine and beyond."

Highlights of the FY 2025 SFOPS bill include:

The bill provides $61.6 billion for the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and other agencies and programs, an increase of $3.3 billion above the prior year's level.

Supporting the diplomatic and development workforce. The bill includes $12.2 billion for Department of State and USAID operations to expand U.S. engagement and influence overseas; serve the interests of Americans living, traveling, and working abroad; and advance U.S. economic and security interests.

Bolstering economic resilience, development finance, export, and trade tools. The bill includes $685 million for the multi-agency Economic Resilience Initiative (ERI) to enhance U.S. and partner country economic security and growth through investments to diversify and secure supply chains, modernize transportation corridors, expand and strengthen information and communications networks, and strengthen energy security. This includes $100 million made available in the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 and $200 million for the Department of the Treasury to increase financing overseas, including for strategic infrastructure and energy security. These priorities contribute to partner macroeconomic stability and mitigate the influence of malign actors on critical supply chains, including by countering substandard or coercive forms of lending offered by other nations.

Investing in global health programs and humanitarian assistance. The bill includes $9.7 billion to support critical global health initiatives to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, and neglected tropical diseases; advance global health security, including $250 million for a U.S. contribution to the Pandemic Fund; and increase key efforts, such as programs to support maternal and child health and the global health workforce. The bill increases funding for family planning and reproductive health services to help prevent maternal mortality globally and allow people to plan families on their own terms, and extends the PEPFAR authorization through fiscal year 2026. The bill also increases humanitarian assistance to $8.9 billion for programs to help meet unprecedented forced displacement, food insecurity, and other emergency needs across the globe.

Supporting sustainable and inclusive development, democratic governance, and economic growth. The bill provides $9.5 billion for programs to support development and economic assistance programs, and includes increases for bilateral and multilateral mechanisms to support biodiversity, adaptation, sustainable landscapes, and clean energy programs, including $150 million for the Clean Technology Fund. The bill increases U.S. agriculture and food security programming and directs resources to target countries that demonstrate the greatest need. The bill also provides $200 million for two new foundations focused on conservation and food security, if authorized, better leveraging private-sector investment.

Ensures critical funding for international financial institutions. The bill provides $2.7 billion to support international financial institutions, including replenishments for the Inter-American Development Bank, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and a callable capital increase at the African Development Bank. The bill increases flexible funding for the Department of the Treasury to enhance lending at these institutions and provide alternatives to People's Republic of China (PRC) financing, and supports deploying U.S. development advisors to the U.S. executive directors at each of the multilateral development banks to improve their impact.

Meeting our commitments to international organizations. The bill provides $2.9 billion to meet our commitments and fully fund our dues to the United Nations and other international organizations, consistent with applicable statutory caps. It ensures that the United States maintains its global leadership role and combats the malign influence of adversaries and competitors at international organizations with increased funding to recruit and place Americans in entry-level U.N. jobs, sustained funding to support the recruitment of U.S. candidates for U.N. agency leadership elections, and resources to detail U.S. government subject matter experts to key U.N. agencies.

Countering malign actors: The bill includes $1.4 billion to strengthen law enforcement cooperation, counter drug trafficking, and related purposes, including $170 million to support efforts to stop global flows of fentanyl and other synthetic drugs as well as their precursor materials. The bill also increases funding for the Countering PRC Influence Fund; enhances strategic investments to counter Russian influence and aggression, including in Africa; and increases funding for partner military financing, training, and education globally.

Regional priorities. The bill fully funds assistance for Ukraine, increases Indo-Pacific programming by $100 million to $1.9 billion total, includes new provisions to support trade and investment in Africa, and provides funds to support stabilization operations in Haiti. The bill also includes 20,000 additional Afghan Special Immigrant Visas.

Transitional justice and global fragility. The bill supports transitional justice in Sudan, Ethiopia, and Liberia, and increases funding for implementation of the Global Fragility Act to $150 million and ensures such funds are used for countries with national and local governments with the demonstrated political will and capacity to partner on strengthening government legitimacy.

Oversight, effectiveness, and sustainability. The bill provides increased funding for the State Department and USAID inspectors general, and includes a new provision focused on efforts to accelerate localization of assistance delivery, enhance innovation, improve monitoring and evaluation, and strengthen private-sector partnerships. The bill also includes $5 million for additional staffing for oversight of State Department-funded military assistance to ensure compliance with U.S. laws and policies regarding human rights protections.

Independent agencies. The bill fully funds the Peace Corps, Millennium Challenge Corporation, International Boundary and Water Commission, National Endowment for Democracy, and other independent agencies and entities.

Public link

Please use the above public link if you want to share this noodl on another website.