Senate Subcommittee Passes $21 Million Increase in the HOPWA Program

Contact: media@aidsaction.org or call: 202- 986-1300

The Senate VA/HUD Subcommittee June 9 marked up the FY 99 Appropriations bill, including a $21 million funding increase for the HOPWA program. This increase reflects President Clinton's funding request and, if passed by the full House, would provide $225 million for the program in FY 99. In addition, the Subcommittee passed $1 billion in funding for the Homeless Assistance Grants (HAG) program -- a $177 million increase over FY98. The Subcommittee also attached language to HAG funding that requires that permanent funds be spent on permanent housing, and that 25% of funding spent on services be matched by state or local government funds. These funding levels represent a promising start as the first Congressional action on FY 99 AIDS funding.

But the process is far from over. The full Senate Appropriations Committee will vote on the VA/HUD bill Thursday afternoon, and it is critical that Subcommittee passed funding levels are retained. On the House side, we expect the VA/HUD Subcommittee to mark up its bill on June 18. The House Labor/HHS Subcommittee is expected a mark up on June 24th.

AIDS Action

If your member is on the Senate Subcommittee (bolded below), let them know that we appreciate their support and ask them to protect the funding levels for HOPWA and HAG when the bill goes to the full committee on Thursday.

If your member is not a member of the Senate Subcommittee but a member of the full Committee (see below) tell them how important these programs are to your state and ask them to support the funding levels for HOPWA and HAG.

If your member is a member of the House VA/HUD Subcommittee ask them to fund HOPWA and HAG at levels that at least match the Senate levels.

Committee Rosters

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House VA/HUD subcommittee
Jerry Lewis (R-CA), Chairman
Louis Stokes (D-OH), Ranking Member
Tom Delay (R-TX)
Alan Mollohan (D-W.Va.)
James Walsh (R-NY)
Marcy Kaptur (D-OH)
David Hobson (R-OH)
Carrie Meek (D-FL)
Joe Knollenberg (R-MI)
David Price (D-NC)
Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ)
Mark Neumann (R-WI)
Roger Wicker (R-MS)

Senate Appropriations Full-Committee
Ted Stevens (R-AK), Chairman
Robert C. Byrd (D-W.Va.), Ranking Member
Thad Cochran (R-MS)
Daniel K. Inouye (D-HI)
Arlen Specter (R-PA)
Ernest F. Hollings (D-SC)
Pete V. Domenici (R-NM)
Patrick J. Leahy (D-VT)
Christopher Bond (R-MO)
Dale Bumpers (D-AR)
Slade Gorton (R-WA)
Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
Tom Harkin (D-IA)
Conrad Burns (R-MT)
Barbara A. Mikulski (D-MD)
Richard C. Shelby (R-AL)
Harry Reid (D-NV)
Judd Gregg (R-NH)
Herb Kohl (D-WI)
Robert F. Bennett (R-UT)
Patty Murray (D-WA)
Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R-CO)
Byron L. Dorgan (D-ND)
Larry E. Craig (R-ID)
Barbara Boxer (D-CA)
Lauch Faircloth (R-NC)
Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX)

Needle Exchange Action in the Senate in progress…

At press time the Senate was debating two different amendments to the tobacco reform bill Senators Coverdell (R-GA) and Craig (R-ID) have introduced an anti-drug amendment that contains a number of costly law enforcement and interdiction provisions as well as a permanent ban on federal funding on needle exchange programs. The Democratic leadership made a determination that they must offer a less costly and punitive anti-drug substitute. The Democratic substitute contains needle exchange language that limits the funding ban for one year. We will report on this action in our next Alert to the network.