On August 11, 2021, the Senate passed the Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 budget resolution (Senate Concurrent Resolution 14) on a party line vote of 50-49. The FY 2022 budget resolution allows Senate Democrats to use the budget reconciliation process to pass legislation later this year, including components of the President’s American Jobs Plan and American Families Plan, by a simple majority and without being subject to a filibuster.
The Senate FY 2022 budget resolution provides reconciliation instructions to 11 congressional committees to submit changes in laws within their jurisdictions that will increase the deficit over the period of fiscal years 2022 through 2031 by no more than the specified amounts for each committee. In addition, the Senate Finance Committee is instructed to submit changes in laws within its jurisdiction to reduce the deficit by at least $1 billion over that same time. These instructions are designed to give committees flexibility while still meeting the agreed-upon top-line level of $3.5 trillion in investments over 10 years.
At this time, no specific details about the policy or funding associated with each program is included in the budget reconciliation instructions as announced by the Senate Budget Committee. However, the Senate committees have been given policy ideas to consider during the drafting of their reconciliation legislative text. For example, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, the committee which has jurisdiction over Job Corps, received an instruction of $726 billion to address policy issues focusing on education, childcare, healthcare, workforce training, and pandemic preparedness. The reconciliation instructions specifically include workforce development, training, and school infrastructure as policy priorities. NJCA will continue working with the Senate Budget and HELP Committees, leadership, and Job Corps champions to prioritize the infrastructure needs of the Job Corps program in the upcoming reconciliation bill.
The House is returning to Washington the week of August 23, 2021, to consider its version of the FY 2022 budget resolution. Legislative text for the Senate’s reconciliation process is due to the Senate Budget Committee by September 15, 2021. The budget reconciliation is expected to be considered by the full House and Senate in late September or October at the earliest.
NJCA is working with congressional leaders in both chambers to address infrastructure concerns in the Job Corps program. The President’s and the Congress’ focus on addressing human infrastructure provides a nexus to directly engage with House and Senate policymakers to ensure the Job Corps program receives the necessary support to address its current infrastructure needs, notably the $700 million construction and renovation backlog.
