Kradi --
First, note that the federal budget runs from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30 each
year -- so we're already in the 2005 fiscal year (FY2005).
Peace Corps funding has been increased erratically since the late
1990s and during the Bush Administration. Here were the initial
budget authorizations by Congress for the last 6 years:
All numbers in millions of dollars:
1999: $240
2000: $270
2001: $298
2002: $327
2003: $365
Sources for the budget data are the Congressional Budget Office and
the Peace Corps itself:
Library of Congress
"Senate Rpt.106-046 - PEACE CORPS AUTHORIZATION BILL, FISCAL YEARS
2000 THROUGH 2003"
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/cpquery/?&db_id=cp106&r_n=sr046.106&sel=TOC_10962&
Actual spending can vary, with the executive branch shifting
priorities during the year. The actual 2004 Peace Corps budget was
below that authorized by Congress, at $323 million. In 2003, $275
million was in the final Administration budget.
WHAT HAPPENED IN 2004?
------------------------
The President requested a Peace Corps budget increase again this year,
to $401 million. His goal, announced several years ago, was to get
the Peace Corps to the 10,000 volunteer level -- up from roughly 7,500
volunteers today. At this point, the House has authorized $330
million and the Senate $310 million, and of course the next step is to
get the two legislative branches together on a final number in
conference committee:
Peace Corps
"President Bush Announces 2005 Budget -- Asks Congress for $401 M for
Peace Corps," (Feb. 2, 2004)
http://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=resources.media.press.view&news_id=904
The National Peace Corps Association summarizes the status of
Congressional authorizations here:
"Ask Senate Conferees to Support $330 Million for Peace Corps," (Oct. 1, 2004)
http://www.rpcv.org/pages/sitepage.cfm?category=5&id=908
The Peace Corps budget is submitted by the Administration and is
approved by the House Committee on International Relations and the
Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Here's a more detailed
description of the process:
National Peace Corps Association
"About the Appropriations Process," (Lauren Hale, March 24, 2004)
http://www.rpcv.org/pages/sitepage.cfm?category=5&id=735
Google search strategy:
The PeaceCorps.gov site itself has excellent recent history and a good
search function:
http://www.peacecorps.gov
Google also quickly finds the other major Peace Corps support sites, including:
The National Peace Corps Association
http://www.rpcv.org/index.cfm
Their "speaker's bureau kit" is an amazing collection of facts and
resources on the organization:
http://www.rpcv.org/pages/sitepage.cfm?category=5&id=217#history
The Peace Corps Online news forum:
http://peacecorpsonline.org/messages/messages/board-topics.html
Peace Corps Writers
http://peacecorpswriters.org/
Best regards,
Omnivorous-GA
RPCV, Congo/Zaire, 1973-75 |
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