The Bill: H.R. 2583, Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2012

Annualized Cost: $661 million ($3.3 billion over five years)

Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) has sponsored the Foreign Relations Authorization Act to outline the international programs of the federal government. Spending for the Department of State and agencies under its authority, such as the United States Agency for International Development and the Bureau of Economic, Energy, and Business Affairs, would see an increase of five percent, or $2.2 billion, over the previous year.
The Authorization Act would also modify or expand a number of additional existing international efforts including:

• Intellectual Property Attaché Program: Add six new attachés to reduce counterfeiting and piracy of protected intellectual property
• Peace Corps: Approve greater security requirements for volunteers
• Nongovernmental Organization Grants: Spending in Tibetan communities for political, economic, and social development
• Education Assistance: Spending for partnerships between private businesses and higher education institutions in Africa
• Gun Trafficking Prevention: Expand the program that offers rewards for preventing arms trafficking in Mexico

A new program in H.R. 2583 — the Global Security Contingency Fund