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President Proposes his FY2008 Budget
As is customary on the first Monday in February of every year, the President submitted his annual budget request to Congress on February 5th. The Administration's budget for FY2008 (which begins October 1, 2007) totals over $2.9 trillion.

In his budget message, the President placed a significant emphasis on keeping the economy strong. However, his budget proposal largely contradicts this goal. With the majority of families in the United States relying on women's wages to make ends meet, women's economic security is critical to the economic well-being of our nation. Yet, the Administration's budget would mean more hardship, not more economic opportunity, for unemployed and underemployed women across the country. Under the President's proposal, funding for programs that help women succeed in the workforce would be cut, eliminated, or frozen at inadequate levels.

Major cuts to programs that help women enter, re-enter, and advance in high-paying work

Such severe cuts to Perkins grants would make it harder for States to provide necessary programming and supportive services to ensure that women in economic transition succeed in CTE programs. A funding reduction of this magnitude would also make it harder for States to combat pervasive sex-segregation in CTE by encouraging and supporting women to enroll in CTE programs that are nontraditional for their gender.

Workforce Investment. Once again, the President has proposed dramatically overhauling the workforce investment system by collapsing existing funding streams under the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) in order to create a voucher-based training system of self-directed Career Advancement Accounts (CAAs). The Administration intends to recommend legislation later this year which will likely mirror its previous CAA proposals: accounts of up to $3,000 a year that workers could use to purchase training only, not supportive services such as child care or transportation.

The Administration claims that its WIA reform proposal would “significantly increase the number of workers trained under the current workforce investment system.” However, the total amount of resources available to job-seekers would be significantly lower than the training funds, supportive and other services that are currently available to WIA participants. WIA programs would be cut by almost $500 million, as compared to expected FY2007 levels.

Pell Grants. In a positive move, the President's proposal would raise the maximum Pell Grant to $4,600 in FY2008 and to $5,400 over 5 years. The current Pell Grant is $4,050 and the FY2007 budget is expected to raise that amount to $4,310. However, much of this increase would be paid for by cuts to other student aid programs.

Community Services Block Grant. The President's FY2008 Budget would eliminate the $630 million Community Services Block Grant which provides funds for reducing poverty in communities through a variety of services and activities including those that address education and employment issues. In 2006, funding from the Community Services Block Grant was used to create over 3 million new service opportunities for low-income families, including affordable and expanded public and private transportation, child care and training programs.

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. Despite new federal rules that require States to significantly increase their work participation rates and spend more time monitoring recipients, the President's budget continues a freeze on funding for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. TANF has been funded at $17 billion for the past several years.

Women's Educational Equity. The President's budget would eliminate funding for the Women's Educational Equity Act which promotes educational equity for girls and women and provide funds to help education agencies and institutions meet the requirements of Title IX. WEEA was funded at $2.9 million in FY2006.

In the past, programs in the Women Work! network have received WEEA funding in order to promote women's entry into high-paying fields where they are underrepresented, such as those in technology and engineering. As a justification for eliminating the program, the Administration suggests that, “there is no longer a need for a program focused on eliminating the education gap for girls and women, as women have made educational gains that match or exceed those of their male peers.”

Women's Bureau. The President's FY08 Budget proposal includes $9.8 million for the Department of Labor Women's Bureau – the only federal agency devoted solely to the concerns of women in the workforce. This amount is slightly higher ($140,000) than the Bureau's FY2006 budget, but still does not make up for ground lost since FY2002.

Funding freezes for programs that help workers balance work and family

Child Care Assistance. The President's proposal would freeze discretionary funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant at $2.06 billion. As a result, approximately 300,000 fewer families would receive child care assistance between 2006 and 2010. The budget also cuts Social Services Block Grant Title XX funding, which many States use to provide child care assistance. Under the proposal, the Social Services Block Grant would be reduced from $1.7 billion to $1.2 billion – a $500 million cut.

Head Start. Funding for Head Start would remain frozen at FY2006 levels of $6.78 billion.

After School. Under the President's budget, after school programs authorized through the 21st Century Community Learning Centers would be essentially frozen; the President has proposed a tiny $14,000 increase above FY2006 levels.

Child Care Access Means Parents In School (CCAMPIS). Funding for the CCAMPIS program, which provides grants to colleges and universities to assist low-income student parents with child care needs, would remain frozen at $15.8 million.

Next Steps
Because the government is divided, it is unclear how much weight the President's budget will have on Congressional spending decisions for FY2008. While it is possible that Congress will write its own budget, it is also possible that Members will use some of the President's proposals as a starting point for drafting the congressional Budget Resolution.

In coming weeks, committees in the House and Senate will hold hearings on the areas of the budget within their jurisdiction. Following the hearings, Congress will work to draft the Budget Resolution – a blueprint that sets spending and revenue targets for the year. Women Work! will be working hard to ensure that Congress rejects the President's budget proposal and provides sufficient funding for programs that help women succeed in the workforce. We will need your help to put a face on these proposed cuts and to tell Congress that the Administration's budget is not good for women, families, or a strong economy. Stay tuned for more information from Women Work! on how you can get involved.