Older Americans Act Appropriations Update
On August 1, the Senate Appropriations Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS) Subcommittee released the FY 2025 appropriations report with the funding numbers for all Older Americans Act (OAA) programs. While USAging’s top OAA priorities did not receive the increases desired, we are still happy to report that the Senate did not propose any funding cuts to OAA programs, with most programs mirroring FY 2024 funding levels.
Thanks to your advocacy, the Senate did not adopt the House’s proposed cuts and included funding for (or avoided cuts to) Title III C1 and C2 nutrition programs, Title V, the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) and Adult Protective Services!
Senate-Proposed FY 2025 Funding Details
USAging Top Priorities
Programs Cut in House Bill, Level Funded in the Senate Bill
Additional Level-Funded Programs
Next Steps
It is important to remember these are not the final FY 2025 funding levels but simply the proposed levels from the Senate. Members of Congress are back in their districts and states for August recess. When they return to Washington, DC, after Labor Day, Congress should theoretically begin the negotiation process between the House and Senate bills because the new fiscal year will begin on October 1.
That’s why, even though the House and Senate Appropriations Committees have completed their proposed Labor-HHS funding bills, our advocacy is not over! Our goal now is to keep the House increases to OAA Title III B, III E and Title VI, with the Senate’s better recommendations for the other priorities. With your Representatives and Senators being home this month, now is the time to engage them in person to remind them of why funding for OAA programs is critical! Please use
USAging’s FY 2025 appropriations campaign page for additional advocacy resources and guidance on how to engage your Members of Congress!
As for that October 1 fiscal year start, we fully expect Congress to pass a Continuing Resolution (CR) to buy more time to negotiate FY 2025 appropriations bills. Then they will leave DC again until the November election. The election outcomes will affect whether final bills are passed before the end of the year or punted into the next Congress.
Thanks to your advocacy, the Senate did not adopt the House’s proposed cuts and included funding for (or avoided cuts to) Title III C1 and C2 nutrition programs, Title V, the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) and Adult Protective Services!
Senate-Proposed FY 2025 Funding Details
USAging Top Priorities
- $410 million for OAA Title III B Home & Community-Based Supportive Services, level funded (FY 2024).
- $209 million for OAA Title III E National Family Caregiver Support Program, an increase of $2 million! This is $4 million more than the President’s budget request.
- $50.3 million combined for OAA Title VI Native American Nutrition, Supportive and Caregiver Services, level funded (FY 2024).
Programs Cut in House Bill, Level Funded in the Senate Bill
- $565.3 million for OAA Title III C1 Congregate Meals, level funded (FY 2024) and $381.3 million for C2 Home-Delivered Meals, level funded (FY 2024).
- $405 million for OAA Title V Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP), level funded (FY 2024). The House proposed to eliminate SCSEP, and we are thankful the Senate recognized the value of this program for low-income older adults who need to work.
- Adult Protective Services (APS). Keeps the roughly $15 million for APS whereas the House did not provide any APS funding.
Additional Level-Funded Programs
- $112 million for OAA Nutrition Services Incentive Program (NSIP), level funded (FY 2024). Please note that this does not restore NSIP to its intact FY 2023 level, but also does not cut it further as the Biden Administration proposed. The Senate did not adopt the House proposal to move the NSIP authorizing agency from ACL to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Per the Senate proposal, NSIP would remain with ACL.
- $26.3 million for OAA Title III D Evidence-Based Health Promotion and Disease Prevention.
- $26.7 million for OAA Title VII Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program.
- $8.6 million for Aging and Disability Resource Centers.
- $55.2 million for State Health Insurance Assistance Programs (SHIPs).
Next Steps
It is important to remember these are not the final FY 2025 funding levels but simply the proposed levels from the Senate. Members of Congress are back in their districts and states for August recess. When they return to Washington, DC, after Labor Day, Congress should theoretically begin the negotiation process between the House and Senate bills because the new fiscal year will begin on October 1.
That’s why, even though the House and Senate Appropriations Committees have completed their proposed Labor-HHS funding bills, our advocacy is not over! Our goal now is to keep the House increases to OAA Title III B, III E and Title VI, with the Senate’s better recommendations for the other priorities. With your Representatives and Senators being home this month, now is the time to engage them in person to remind them of why funding for OAA programs is critical! Please use
USAging’s FY 2025 appropriations campaign page for additional advocacy resources and guidance on how to engage your Members of Congress!
As for that October 1 fiscal year start, we fully expect Congress to pass a Continuing Resolution (CR) to buy more time to negotiate FY 2025 appropriations bills. Then they will leave DC again until the November election. The election outcomes will affect whether final bills are passed before the end of the year or punted into the next Congress.