Yearly Allowance

The House Appropriations Committee has trimmed by $7 billion, or 1.3 percent, the amount the Obama administration requested for the Pentagon in fiscal year 2011, from $530 billion to $523 billion.

This sum -- known in budget parlance as a 302(b) allocation -- is also a $15.7 billion increase, or 3.1 percent hike, above the Pentagon's FY-10 enacted base budget of $508.1 billion, according to a committee statement.

White House's request for the State Department and foreign operations accounts take a $2.6 billion hit -- from $56.6 billion to $53.9 billion, or 4.7 percent reduction. This sum would also mark a $5.2 billion hike, or 10.7 percent increase, over the $48.7 billion amount in in the FY-10 budget.

A committee statement accompanying the figures states:

The subcommittee allocations recognize the economic realities facing the country, while allowing for modest but important investments in key priorities.

The 302(b) allocations conform to the Budget Enforcement Resolution that the House adopted on July 1, 2010, which calls for a $14.5 billion reduction to the President’s discretionary request, as adjusted for programs proposed as mandatory but which must be funded as discretionary because the Administration has not submitted the necessary legislation.