President Trump Releases 2021 Budget Proposal

This week, the Trump Administration released its Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 budget proposal totaling $4.8 trillion in spending.

Like all presidential budgets, ultimate passage of President Trump’s 2021 budget proposal is not likely, especially since democrats have the majority in the House. In both chambers, most domestic programs have bipartisan advocates. And in the Senate, bipartisan support will be imperative because it takes 60 votes to move spending bills past delaying tactics.

The budget would eliminate the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) that is intended to help lower-income households maintain energy services in their homes, reduce their energy burdens and protect their health and safety. The Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) under the Department of Energy would also be eliminated.

The budget seeks:

• $92 million for Leaking Underground Storage Tank (LUST) Fund.
• $35.4 billion for the Department of Energy (DOE), an 8 percent decrease from the 2020 enacted level. The proposal also calls for the sale of 15 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR).
• To disestablish the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve (NGSR) and sell one million barrels of refined product currently held in the reserve. The NGSR is very costly to maintain, has not been used for its intended purpose, and is not a practical solution for a severe supply interruption, as, for example, the reserve would only be able to meet one day's worth of gasoline demand in the Northeast States.
• To disestablish the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve (NEHHOR) and sell the one million barrels of ultra-low sulfur distillate currently held in the reserve, with proceeds from the sale intended for deficit reduction.
• A 78 percent cut to DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) research on advanced vehicle technology, a 72 percent cut to its solar energy research, a 74 percent cut to wind energy research, and an 81 percent cut in its energy efficiency research.
• $6.7 billion for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), a 26 percent decrease from the 2020 enacted level.
• $6.2 billion for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), a $265 million increase from the 2020 enacted level.
• $182 billion in cuts over a decade to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and once again proposes the implementation of a harvest box program which would take billions in SNAP benefits that are spent in stores and divert the money to supplying SNAP recipients with delivery boxes of nonperishable foods.
• $11 billion for the Department of Labor (DOL), an 11 percent decrease from the 2020 enacted level.
• $1 trillion in federal investment for infrastructure which would be split into two components; an $810 billion, 10-year reauthorization of surface transportation programs including $602 billion for highway infrastructure; and $190 billion in investments for other infrastructure sectors including water and broadband.

Finally, President Trump’s budget proposal recommends removing tobacco from Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) regulation and will instead create a new agency within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that would be responsible for the oversight of tobacco products.
 

From PMAA