In a last-minute deal to avoid a U.S. government shutdown at the stroke of midnight on Dec. 12, congressional negotiators announced Wednesday a $1.1 trillion U.S. spending bill that provides emergency funding for critical crises like Ebola and will sustain current aid efforts into next year.
The bill however raises questions about Congress’ long-term strategy for supporting U.S. foreign assistance programs — or lack thereof.
The international affairs portion of the budget amounts to $50.9 billion, a marginal increase over last year’s total. This sum includes the “150 account” base funds plus “overseas contingency operations” — or OCO funding — which was initially created as a short-term, emergency account to support the war on terrorism.