A chaotic budget environment beleaguered with cuts, delays, and rescissions does not enable effective aid nor efficient use of American taxpayer dollars. To shed light on the issues with this process, MFAN is publishing a series of articles that trace the harmful effects of budget instability from the halls of Congress to community programs on the ground to illustrate the damage that an erratic budget process has on global development.
Foreign affairs budget instability is not new. Pipeline delays, threats of government shutdown, and other erratic budget practices predate the current administration, but they have grown in both magnitude and frequency. The Trump administration has attempted reckless rescissions and repeatedly proposed drastic 30 percent cuts to the foreign aid budget that would threaten U.S. national security, weaken our global standing, and harm vital development and diplomacy programs.
Congress consistently misses the deadline to appropriate funds for development and diplomacy by the start of the next fiscal year. As a result, agencies and programs face ongoing funding uncertainty.
Read more:
Erratic budget processes threaten US foreign aid, George Ingram, Brookings
Opinion: The toll of budget dysfunction on US development leadership, Susan Reichle, Devex
Continuing Resolutions, Budget Uncertainty Harm Readiness, Service Secretaries Say (DOD)
Crisis Budgeting Creates an ‘Uncertainty Tax,’ Senator Says
The Continuing Costs of Budget Uncertainty; Continuing Resolutions are a Bad Way to Do Business. Here’s Why. (Rob Wittman, R-VA)