As previously reported by the Alliance , the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee for State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs approved legislation last week that would boost Department of State educational and cultural exchange program funding in FY 2011 by more than $19 million. The Senate committee bill provides a total of $654.277 million for State Department exchanges: $21.077 million above the President’s request of $633.2 million and $19.277 million above the FY 2010 enacted level of $635 million. The Senate number also represents a significant increase over the $635 million appropriated in the House version of the FY11 bill on July 1.

The below chart details the Senate bill’s FY11 exchange funding request by program, as compared to the President’s FY11 request and the FY10 enacted levels (download the chart in Excel format here). Academic exchange programs received $367.966 million (an increase of just over $9 million from FY 10), including $260.362 million for the Fulbright Program (an increase of just under $7 million). Professional and cultural exchanges received $208.806 million (an increase of just over $3 million), including $96.369 million for the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP), a bump of $1.3 million from FY10.

Three specific areas of exchange were singled out in the Senate bill report language:

• Youth exchange: In particular, the Committee noted its support of the goals of the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES) Program and recommended funding of $25.5 million for YES in FY11, an increase of $500,000 from FY10.
• Global engagement: The Committee instructs the Department “to expand exchanges and English language programs in Muslim-majority countries and Muslim communities worldwide,” and that the Department must “submit a spend plan by country prior to obligating the funds under this heading.”
• One-time International Exchange Grant Program: “The Committee recommends $8,500,000 to provide one-time competitive grants for international exchanges that address issues of mutual interest to the United States and other countries…..The Committee encourages the Department to utilize this program to expand international exchanges in areas that are not predominantly served by other U.S. Government exchange programs, such as exchange with developing countries; community leaders who would not traditionally have an opportunity to participate in an exchange; students and youth with high financial need; and indigenous and other minority ethnic groups.”

Other items of note in the State-Foreign Ops bill beyond educational and cultural exchanges include:

• Public diplomacy: The Committee recommended a total of $561.971 million for public diplomacy programs.
• American Centers: Included in the total for State Department public diplomacy programs, the Committee provided $14.356 million for the establishment of up to 10 new American Centers at locations around the world and “to develop several American Center models to meet different local interests, preferences, and security conditions.” The report language notes that the Committee supports the continued construction and improvement of American Centers “through a strategy that balances the need for publicly accessible facilities, reasonable and sustainable costs, and compliance with the Secure Embassy Construction and Counterterrorism Act of 1999 regulations.”
• Foreign Service Mid-career Pilot Program: The Committee notes that it is “aware of the dearth of mid-career Foreign Service Officers at the Department of State, and directs the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Committee, to implement a pilot program to recruit mid-career professionals for the Foreign Service.” No specific dollar amount was attached to this program.
• The Peace Corps: The Committee recommended $420.2 million for the Peace Corps in FY11, $26 million below the President’s budget request, but $20.2 million above the FY10 level.
• International broadcasting operations: The Committee allocated $743.925 million for international broadcasting (an increase of $10 million over FY10 levels), including a focus on Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks.
• USAID: The total allocated in FY11 for USAID was $1.413 billion, which is $23.7 million above its FY10 budget, but $63.5 million below the President’s request. The Committee noted that it believes this funding level “continues the effort to address the staff shortages at USAID.”

This Senate appropriations bill will eventually be reconciled with the House version by a conference committee, though all signs indicate that a continuing resolution will be passed to extend FY10 funding levels into FY11 and past the November elections. Individual spending bills may be passed following the elections, but it seems more likely that the individual bills will instead be packaged into an omnibus and passed en masse.