Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2016
Latest action. Committee on appropriationA law permitting federal agencies to spend money. The Constitution forbids any spending without one, Congress's 'power of the purse'.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) Senate subcommitteeA smaller panel inside a standing committee with jurisdiction over a slice of its subject matter. Most hearings and the first markup usually happen here.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 114-633.
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.)
Highlights:
The Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2016 provides FY2016 appropriations for the Department of Agriculture (USDA), except for the Forest Service; the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
The bill includes both discretionary and mandatory funding. The mandatory funding levels are generally set by authorizing legislation such as the farm bill and are frequently limited in the agriculture appropriations bill.
The bill decreases discretionary funding for Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies below FY2015 levels.
Compared to FY2015 levels, the bill
decreases discretionary spending for Agricultural Programs, Conservation Programs, Domestic Food Programs, Foreign Assistance and Related Programs; and
increases discretionary funding for Rural Development and the FDA.
Also included in the bill are provisions that affect policy in areas such as:
pre-market review and reporting requirements for tobacco products,
imports of beef from Brazil and Argentina,
the use of imported processed poultry from China for the school lunch and other nutrition programs, and
the 2015 dietary guidelines.
Full Summary:
Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2016
Provides FY2016 appropriations to the Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and related agencies.
TITLE I--AGRICULTURAL PROGRAMS
Provides appropriations for the following agricultural programs and services:
the Office of the Secretary;
Executive Operations;
the Office of the Chief Information Officer;
the Office of the Chief Financial Officer;
the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights;
the Office of Civil Rights;
Agriculture Buildings and Facilities;
Hazardous Materials Management;
the Office of Inspector General;
the Office of the General Counsel;
the Office of Ethics;
the Office of the Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics;
the Economic Research Service;
the National Agricultural Statistics Service;
the Agricultural Research Service;
The summary continues for 102 more paragraphs. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Reported to House without amendment" stage on July 14, 2015. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on October 21, 2015: Committee on Appropriations Senate Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 114-633.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 114th Congress (2015-16), 329 of the 10,233 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.2 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
ROBERT ADERHOLT (R-AL) introduced it on July 14, 2015. No cosponsors are recorded.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on July 14, 2015, 4076 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 3977 days ago, on October 21, 2015.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 114th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2017 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers