The following is from President Joe Biden’s 9 April 2021 correspondence to Congressional Appropriators outlining his Administration’s topline request for fiscal year (FY) 2022 discretionary funding.
“The discretionary request proposes $769 billion in non-defense discretionary funding in FY 2022, a 16 percent increase over the FY 2021 enacted level, and $753 billion for national defense programs, a 1.7 percent increase.”
With specific regard to defense spending, the correspondence notes: the President’s 2022 discretionary request includes $715 billion for the Department of Defense. The discretionary request also discontinues requests for Overseas Contingency Operations as a separate funding category, instead funding direct war costs and enduring operations in the DOD base budget, a significant budgetary reform. It deters China. The discretionary request prioritizes the need to counter the threat from China as the Department’s top challenge. The Department would also seek to deter destabilizing behavior by Russia. Leveraging the Pacific Deterrence Initiative and working together with allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific region and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, DOD would ensure that the United States builds the concepts, capabilities, and posture necessary to meet these challenges.