The Biden administration released its full budget for fiscal year 2022 on Friday, requesting large increases for scientific research but limited increases for student aid and other higher education programs.
Following passage of the American Rescue Act and the release of proposals for two massive infrastructure bills that included hundreds of billions for higher education (the American Jobs Plan and the American Families Plan), the FY 2022 budget finalizes the new administration’s spending goals for this year.
The budget itself was the latest ever released, due to issues with the transition to power and emphasis on other large spending proposals. Some of the biggest proposals for colleges and universities, including a $400 increase in the maximum Pell Grant and roughly $600 million in new funding for institutional support for Historically Black Colleges and Universities and other minority serving institutions, were previously announced in the administration’s so-called ”skinny budget” back in April.
Among the other notable funding requests in the budget:
- A more than 20 percent increase in funding for the National Institutes of Health, for a total of $52 billion.
- The National Science Foundation would receive a 20 percent increase over last year, for a total of $10.2 billion.
- Flat funding for both Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants and the Federal Work-Study program.
- An increase of over $200 million for the TRIO programs, and $40 million for GEAR UP.
- Teacher preparation programs received significant attention with Teacher Quality Partnerships receiving over a 150 percent increase of $80 million and an over 200 percent increase in funding for the TEACH Grant program.
- The National Endowment for the Humanities would receive a 6 percent increase for a total of $177.55 million.
- The Child Care Access Means Parents In Schools program would receive $95 million under the administration’s request, an increase of nearly 73 percent over last year’s levels.
It is important to remember that the president’s budget is simply a request by the administration, and all funding levels require legislative action to be enacted. That process looks to be especially complicated this year, with issues such as overall spending levels, a debt ceiling deadline, and the possibility of multiple reconciliation bills to be addressed. It is widely expected that meaningful action on appropriations is unlikely to occur before the fall.