Senate Subcommittee Approves $606B FY 2007 Labor-HHS-Education Spending Bill

The Senate Appropriations Labor, HHS, Education and Related Agencies Subcommittee on Tuesday approved the fiscal year 2007 Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill, which includes $143 billion in discretionary spending, CQ Today reports. The legislation includes $143 billion in discretionary spending, about $1.3 billion more than FY 2006 levels and $5 billion more than President Bush requested. The House Appropriations Committee on June 13 approved a version of the bill that includes about $1 billion less in discretionary spending. The Senate bill includes $28.5 billion in spending for NIH -- $220 million more than the FY 2006 levels, $200 million more than Bush requested and about $250 million more than the amount included in the House bill. In addition, the Senate bill includes $100 million in spending for CDC facilities, $70 million more than the amount included in the House bill but $58 less than FY 2006 levels. The Senate bill also includes $119 million in spending for pandemic flu preparedness, for which the House bill includes no spending (Wayne, CQ Today, 7/18). According to CongressDaily, one "victim" of the Senate bill "was the Access to Recovery substance abuse program, for which a proposed $98 million was zeroed out over the objections" of Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho) (Cohn, CongressDaily, 7/19). The full Senate Appropriations Committee will consider the legislation on Thursday (CQ Today, 7/18).