In upcoming weeks, Congress is expected to vote to appropriate funds to pay for fiscal year 2003 programs, including funding for foreign assistance and Title II food aid. As a conference committee made up of members of the House and the Senate draft the final spending legislation, now is the time to urge you Senators and Representatives to support $500 million in supplemental Title II food aid, aimed primarily at addressing the hunger crisis in Africa.

Background: On January 24, the Senate added $500 million in emergency food assistance for Africa to its version of the 2003 omnibus spending bill, which appropriates funding for most current government programs. The passage of this amendment came as a huge surprise because the Senate had voted to effectively kill a similar provision just the night before. Thankfully, persistent advocacy both by CRS Staff and by CRS Legislative Network members turned the tide. The Senate also passed an increase in overall Title II food aid to $1.185 billion, close to our goal of $1.2 billion.

Title II food aid is the government program that provides U.S. agricultural goods to CRS and other groups to address development and humanitarian needs abroad. Because the last Congress did not pass its 2003 appropriations by the start of the fiscal year, most government programs, including those that fund relief and development in poor countries, have been limping along at 2002 funding levels.

Potential hurdles for the Title II food aid provision: The House has vowed to keep spending for fiscal year 2003 within the president's requested cap of $389.5 billion. The Senate spending bill, however, exceeds that cap by about $1 billion, which increases the danger that some programs could be cut from the final bill, including the hard-fought supplemental food aid.

What You Can Do: Contact your Senators and Representatives immediately and strongly urge them to support the provisions in the Senate's version of the FY '03 omnibus appropriations bill that provides $500 million in emergency Title II food aid to address the expanding Africa food crisis.

• If you call the Washington, DC office, please ask to speak to the Senator's and Representative's Chief of Staff or to the aide responsible for matters regarding appropriations.
• If you call the district office in your home state, please ask to speak to the Senator's and Representatives' District Director.

Talking Points:

• As you negotiate and vote on a final 2003 appropriations bill, I urge you to support the provisions in the Senate version of the bill, which provides $500 million in supplemental emergency Title food aid.
• This funding is essential to address the hunger crisis in Africa, which is affecting more than 34 million people.

Senator Richard Durban
202/224-2152
www.durbin/senate.gov

Senator Peter Fitzgerald
202/224-2854
www.fitzgerald/senate.gov

Congressman Bobby Rush
202/225-4372
www.house.gov/rush

Congressman Jesse Jackson
202/225-0773
www.jessejacsonjr.org

Congressman Danny Davis
202/225-5006
www.house.gov/davis

For other Congressman
www.house.gov

For other Senators
www.senate.gov