On Monday, February 13, 2012, President Obama released his proposed budget for the federal fiscal year 2013 (FY13) which begins October 1, 2012 and ends September 30, 2013.  The President’s budget adopts the Budget Control Act mandate to reduce discretionary spending by $1 trillion over 10 years since the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction – aka the Super Committee – failed to identify their own deficit-reducing plan.  While the President’s budget is unlikely to be adopted by Congress, it lays out a clear path of President Obama’s priorities – a path that continues to move towards a more equitable society.

See resources from Michigan's Children's national friends on President Obama's FY13 budget and what it means for children and families:

• CLASP: President's budget includes promising news for young children
  
• CLASP: President's budget demonstrates commitment to disconnected youth, but doesn't go far enough
  
• CLASP: Education and training are top priorities in President Obama's 2013 budget
• First Focus: The President's 2013 budget at a glance: discretionary spending
• Voices for America's Children: Voices applauds child investment in Obama's budget

See First Focus's fact sheet on the federal fiscal year (FY) 2012 budget and what it means for kids. In total, when adjusted for inflation, discretionary funding for kids will have declined by more than 2.2%. This amounts to a loss of nearly $1.7 billion since FY2010. At a time when almost 1 in every 4 children live in poverty, funding for kids should be on the rise.

• The Committee for Education Funding put together a chart of the fiscal year 2012 federal appropriations for select education programs.  This chart shows FY11 funding levels compared to the President's budget, House budget, Senate budget and final FY2012 omnibus bill.

• Voices for America's Children has put together a succinct newsletter article on "The Many Pieces of the Federal Budget Puzzle" that describes the Budget Control Act, President Obama's American Jobs Act, President Obama's deficit reduction plan and the fiscal year 2012 federal budget appropriations and how they are all currently in play in determining the fiscal year 2012 federal budget.
• First Focus has launched the "Don't Cut Kids" Campaign as the federal fiscal year 2012 budget is being debated.  Learn more about the Campaign and how proposed FY2012 budgets will affect children and families.
• With threats to Medicaid in the fiscal year 2012 federal budget debate, read this report, commissioned by First Focus, on how Medicaid protects children: Medicaid Works: A Review of How Public Insurance Protects the Health and Finances of Children and Other Vulnerable Populations.

The Children's Budget

Each year First Focus releases the Children's Budget, a comprehensive guide to all federal spending on children and an invaluable resource for all those seeking to improve the lives of America's youths.  The Children's Budget 2011 reveals that spending on children in the 2011 federal budget dropped by nearly 10 percent from 2010, falling from a five year high of 9.2 percent to 8.4 percent. The report further explains that had it not been for the one-time infusion of funding provided by the economic legislation known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), spending on children’s programs in 2010 and 2011 would have been significantly lower.

Kids' Share

The Fifth Annual version of Kid's Share 2011 examines federal spending trends and federal tax policies that support and impact children and families. This year's Kid's Share report finds that if the dependent exemption and other tax expenditures are considered spending, the children's share of the non-defense domestic budget has diminished by twenty percent since 1960, while spending on the non-child portions of entitlement programs has more than doubled.

President's FY2012 Budget

• First Focus has reviewed President Obama's proposed budget from a children perspective.  Read their issue analyses on how the President's budget will impact various children's programs.
• Voices for America's Children has reviewed President Obama's proposed budget from a children and families perspective and issued a thorough analysis, America's Kids: America's Future - An Analysis of the President's FY2012 Budget, and other helpful materials on the President's proposed budget.

The Effect of the Recession on Child Well-Being

Our partner, First Focus, released a report titled "The Effect of Recession on Child Well-Being." Among the findings, the report highlights the importance of public programs to offset the negative impacts of a recession. Click here to read the full report.

As the federal deficit continues to grow, a push by Congress has resulted in the demand that federal spending be controlled. The Budget Control Act of 2011 created the federal Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction – aka the “super committee” – charged with reducing national spending by at least $1.2 trillion over the next 10 years. The super committee has until November 23rd to come to an agreement on a deficit reduction plan that may include both responsible revenues and spending cuts, otherwise across-the-board cuts known as sequestration will take place. Sequestration will result in equal cuts across both security and non-security programs but will hold several entitlement programs harmless such as Medicaid, Social Security and other low-income programs.

Michigan is in a powerful position with 2 of the 12 Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction members from our state – Congressman Dave Camp (R-04) and Congressman Fred Upton (R-06).

• Read a copy of the letters that Michigan's Children sent to the two Congressmen urging them to prioritize children and families in deficit negotiations.
• See our Budget Basics publication Federal Investments Critical to Michigan Children and Families.
• See our Issues for Michigan’s Children publication Threats to the Next Generation: Why Children are Hardest Hit by Cuts in the Safety Net.
• See our factsheets on the importance of federal food assistance programs in Congressman Camp's district and Congressman Upton's district.
• See First Focus's factsheets that target Congressman Camp and Congressman Upton.
• Visit OMB Watch for more information on the Super Committee including news and analyses.
• Contact Congressman Camp and Congressman Upton and urge them to be a champion for children and prioritize children in deficit negotiations.