Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Global Leadership Coalition (USGLC) today said the appropriations agreement for Fiscal Year 2015 released last night will sustain much-needed international affairs programs in the short-term but heightens longer-term concerns about funding.

“Given the tight budget caps, we are pleased that Congress is sustaining International Affairs programs at a slightly higher funding level and providing additional emergency funding to fight Ebola. These programs can literally make the difference between life and death,” said USGLC President & CEO Liz Schrayer. “But the continued decline in base International Affairs funding is a serious concern,” she added. “Given the enormity of the crises throughout the globe, it’s very risky to continue to reduce core funding while relying on the OCO account to fill the short-fall.”

The International Affairs portion of the budget, consisting of base funds for all programs plus funding for Overseas Contingency Operations, supports diplomacy and development activities around the globe. The concern in base funding stems from the FY15 agreement’s $41.6 billion funding level, which is 5.6% below current levels and is 16% below levels of five years ago (FY10).

USGLC will post a detailed breakdown and analysis of the FY15 International Affairs spending allocation on its online Budget Center

The U.S. Global Leadership Coalition (www.usglc.org) is a broad-based influential network of 400 businesses and NGOs; national security and foreign policy experts; and business, faith-based, academic and community leaders in all 50 states who support a smart power approach of elevating development and diplomacy alongside defense in order to build a better, safer world.

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