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Bush Signs 2005 Budget Bill

Associated Press
Published | Updated

WASHINGTON – President Bush on Wednesday signed into law a $388 billion legislative package that covers the spending of every federal agency but the Pentagon and Department of Homeland Security.

Congress sent the measure, which covers the fiscal year that began Oct. 1, to the president on Tuesday. A temporary spending measure was to expire at midnight.

Congress passed the package Nov. 20. Lawmakers delayed sending it to the White House until they overturned language that would have made it easier for some members of Congress and their aides to enter Internal Revenue Service (search) offices and see income tax returns.

White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the president was not troubled by the billions of dollars in special-interest measures added onto the bill by lawmakers.

"The fact that members of Congress worked together with us to meet our highest priorities and show spending restraint elsewhere in the budget is an important step in the president's hopes of reducing the deficit," McClellan said.

Here are the highlights of the bill. The figures do not include effects of an across-the-board cut of at least 0.8 percent imposed on programs throughout the bill, part of a last-minute deal to pay for some of the measure's increases.

— Education: $59.7 billion, $1.4 billion over last year and $300 million below President Bush's request. Aid to low-income school districts $12.8 billion, $500 million below Bush but $500 million more than last year. Grants for improving teacher quality $1.5 billion, 0.7 percent over last year. Aid for disabled students $11.8 billion, 5.4 percent over last year.

— Transportation: Overall $59 billion, $1.1 billion over last year and $1 billion more than Bush requested. Highway construction gets $34.7 billion, $1 billion over last year and over Bush's proposal. Federal Aviation Administration (search) gets $10.4 billion, $100 million over last year. Amtrak gets $1.2 billion, the same as last year.

— Foreign aid: $19.5 billion, $2 billion over last year and $1.8 billion below Bush's request. Total $2.9 billion for fighting AIDS (search) in poor countries, $100 million more than Bush wanted.

— State Department: $8.3 billion, a $554 million cut from 2004. Embassy security would grow by 17 percent to $612 million.

— Land and cultural programs: The Interior Department will get $9.9 billion, nearly $100 million less than Bush wanted and 0.4 percent more than 2004. National parks operating money goes up 6 percent, but money for buying park lands remains nearly two-thirds below the peak of three years ago.

— Health and social programs: Maternal and child health gets $896 million, 0.7 percent over last year. AIDS programs get almost $2.1 billion, 1.2 percent over last year. National Institutes of Health (search) get $28.5 billion, 3.1 percent over last year, one of its smallest increases in years. Energy assistance for low income families $2.2 billion, 4 percent over last year.

— Veterans: Veterans' health care programs will get $30.3 billion, $1.9 billion over last year and $1.2 billion more than Bush wanted.

— Housing, urban affairs: $37.3 billion, 1.6 percent below last year and 1.4 percent over Bush's request.

— Justice Department: $20.9 billion, $1 billion over last year. FBI (search) gets $5.2 billion, almost a 14 percent increase over last year. Aid to state and local law enforcement agencies is $1.3 billion, $90 million below last year.

— Environmental Protection Agency: $8.1 billion, 3.3 percent below last year but 3.8 percent over Bush.

— National Aeronautics and Space Administration (search): $16.2 billion, or 5.3 percent over last year.

— Postal Service: Bill includes $507 million for equipment to detect biohazards and to build a postal facility in Washington, D.C., to irradiate mail to destroy possible biological contamination.

— Congress: $3.6 billion, $43 million over last year. Capitol Police get $232 million, $13 million over last year. No funds provided for continuing construction of Capitol Visitors' Center (search), which is running well over budget and has money left over from previous years.