About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

1 1 (March 4, 2019)

handle is hein.crs/govxyf0001 and id is 1 raw text is: ~~ lnfofrr ir 1g -h eisla'v sea~ inr 1 Updated March 4, 2019 Foreign Affairs Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) Funding: Background and Current Status The 116th Congress may debate Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funding levels in the context of the FY2020 foreign affairs and defense budgets. A key feature of OCO funds is their effective exemption, like emergency funds, from the discretionary spending limits established by the Budget Control Act of 2011 (BCA, P.L. 112-25). Some Members have suggested that this exemption provides agencies with additional budget cushioning and flexibility, allowing defense and nondefense funding to exceed the spending caps. Within the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (BBA, P.L. 115- 123), Congress raised the overall discretionary spending limits set by the BCA. It increased FY2019 defense funding levels by $85 billion and FY2019 nondefense funding levels (including foreign affairs) by $68 billion. In response to the raised caps, the Administration requested no foreign affairs OCO funds for FY2019, instead proposing that all funds fall within regular funding. The FY2019 enacted omnibus appropriations law (Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019, P.L. 116-6, Div. F) set foreign affairs OCO funding at $8.0 billion. While ongoing debate in Congress over OCO may focus on defense spending (where the largest share of OCO funds are appropriated), foreign affairs OCO funding may continue to play a role in the international affairs budget. ackground on Foreign Affairs OCO The foreign affairs agencies began requesting OCO funding in FY2012, distinguishing between what is referred to as enduring (ongoing costs) versus extraordinary, temporary costs of State and USAID in the frontline states of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Many view this approach as similar to the annual emergency supplemental appropriations to support the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) in the frontline states during the George W. Bush Administration. Congress, having provided OCO funds for the Department of Defense (DOD) earlier, adopted this approach for foreign affairs, although it never permanently defined its uses in statute. Since 2012, Congress has appropriated more nondefense OCO funds than were requested each year and authorized its use in additional countries (see Figure 1). In contrast, President Obama first sought OCO funds for a country other than the three frontline states in the FY2015 request when he requested OCO funds for Syria. For the first foreign affairs OCO appropriation, Congress provided FY2012 OCO funds (P.L. 112-74, Title VIII) for a wide range of recipients beyond the three frontline states, including Yemen, Somalia, Kenya, and the Philippines. In addition to country-specific uses, Congress also appropriated funds for the Global Security Contingency Fund. In the FY2013 full-year continuing appropriations (P.L. 113-6, Div. F, Title VII, Sec. 1707-1708), Congress specified only Jordan as an additional OCO-recipient country. Figure I. Nondefense Overseas Contingency Operations, FY20 I 2-FY20 19 $ Billions * Requested M Enacted $25.0 $20.7 $O.8 $20.0 $15.0 $ 2 ~ 0$12.0 FY2012 FYIC1 ' _,014 FY2015 FY2016 FY201Y -Y2018 FY2019 Source: Department of State Congressional Budget justifications, FY2014, FY2015, FY2016, FY2017, FY2018, and FY2019, P.L. 115- 141, and P.L. 116-6. The totals enacted include net rescissions. For FY2014 (P.L. 113-76, Title VIII), Congress provided four accounts with no-year (available until expended) OCO funds, but made most foreign affairs OCO funds available for two years-or until September 30, 2015. Congress also expanded the terms of transfer authority, providing greater flexibility among certain accounts. It also authorized transfers from those accounts to International Disaster Assistance (IDA) and Migration and Refugee Assistance (MRA) accounts, subject to certain dollar amounts or percentages, and regular notification procedures. FY2014 OCO-funded activities were in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Jordan, Lebanon, the Central African Republic, and Somalia. For FY2015, although Congress did not provide specific OCO funds for countering the Islamic State (IS), as was requested, it did provide an increase in OCO funds in many accounts with language that allowed it to be used for counterterrorism. The Obama Administration requested an expanded use of OCO funds for Syria and peacekeeping in FY2016 and FY2017. Congress also provided OCO funding in both https://crsreports.congress.gov

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most