The Issues
FY 2027 Presidential Budget Request: Overview & Key Highlights
On April 3, the administration released its request to Congress for fiscal year 2027 (FY27) funding. The proposal requests $35.6 billion in international affairs funding (which includes both State Department operations and U.S. foreign assistance) — a 30% decrease ($15.5 billion less) from FY26 enacted levels.
The administration’s budget proposal is the first salvo in annual budget negotiations with Congress, which holds the constitutional “power of the purse” via the appropriations process. This FY27 international request is $4.08 billion higher than the administration’s request last year ($31.52 billion for FY26), which was more than 60% below the $51.1 billion in FY26 international funding ultimately enacted by Congress and signed into law by the President on February 3 of this year.
Overall
| Program Name | President’s FY27 Request | FY26 Enacted | Change from FY26 Enacted |
|---|---|---|---|
| International Affairs Budget | $35.6 billion | $51.1 billion | -$15.5 billion (30% decrease) |
Global Health Programs
| Program Name | President’s FY27 Request | FY26 Enacted | Change from FY26 Enacted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Global Health total | $5.123 billion | $9.42 billion | (-$4.3 billion) |
| PEPFAR | Mentioned, amount not specified | $4.6 billion | |
| Global Fund | Mentioned, amount not specified | $1.25 billion | |
| Gavi | $300 million | (-$300 million) |
Global Health ($5.1 billion total, -$4.3 billion): Proposes that funding be provided to carry out the America First Global Health Strategy, and to focus on “new compacts that unify funding,” strengthen bilateral health assistance commitments, and increase country ownership. The request represents a $4.3 billion reduction from FY26 enacted levels ($9.42 billion), and proposes to eliminate disease-specific accounts (for example, dedicated funding for HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, Malaria, and Polio), while expanding the so-called Mexico City policy (now the Promoting Human Flourishing in Foreign Assistance Policy) applying it all foreign assistance accounts, including Global Health. The proposal also requests elimination of funding for the World Health Organization and the Pan-American Health Organization.
- PEPFAR: A PEPFAR funding amount is not specified in the request – though the program is mentioned and notes that funds will continue to be requested under the Global Health account. The request proposes eliminating several activities, including reproductive health education and birth control, supply chain “control towers,” and promoting health equity.
- Global Fund: The Global Fund is mentioned in the request, however, an amount for the program is not specified. The request notes an intention to limit U.S. contributions to 33% of total Global Fund funding (the same limit as under the PEPFAR reauthorization law that lapsed in 2024).
- Gavi: The request zeroes out funding for Gavi, and states that future funding is contingent on the organization making “necessary reforms and meeting certain benchmarks on vaccine safety.”
Economic Development Programs
| Program Name | President’s FY27 Request | FY26 Enacted Level | Change from FY26 Enacted |
|---|---|---|---|
| African Development Fund (AfDF) | $0 (and seeks rescission of $197 million in prior funds) | $0 | No change |
| World Bank IDA | $866.7 million | $1.066 billion | (-$199.3 million) |
| Development Finance Corporation (DFC) | $804 million | $983 billion | (-$179 million) |
| Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) | $609 million (and seeks rescission of $385 million in prior funds) | $830 million | (-$221 million) (not including any rescissions) |
- African Development Fund (AfDf): Includes no new funding and proposes to rescind $197 million in prior year funds, alleging that the Fund is overly focused on climate and gender initiatives.
- World Bank International Development Association (IDA) (-$199 million): Requests $866.7 million for FY27.
- Development Finance Corporation (-$179 million): Requests $803.7 million for FY27. (Note: This discretionary funding is for DFC’s administrative and program expenses, and does not reflect its recently-expanded $180 billion maximum contingent liability (MCL), which caps the size of DFC’s financing commitments.)
- Millennium Challenge Corporation (-$221 million): Requests $609 million for FY27, as well as a rescission of $385 million in previously appropriated funds for “MCC programs that are no longer aligned with Administration priorities.”
Other Major Accounts
| Program Name | President’s FY27 Request | FY26 Enacted | Change from FY26 Enacted |
|---|---|---|---|
| International Humanitarian Assistance (IHA) | $4 billion (and seeks rescission of $1 billion in prior funds) | $5.4 billion | No change |
| America First Opportunity Fund (A1OF) | $5 billion | $850 million | (-$199.3 million) |
| National Security Investment Programs (NSIP) | $0 | $6.7 billion | (-$179 million) |
- International Humanitarian Assistance (-$1.4 billion): Requests $4 billion for FY27, $500 million of which should be reserved for Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance (ERMA), and proposes to rescind $1 billion of unobligated, previously appropriated International Disaster Assistance (IDA) funds.
- America First Opportunity Fund (A1OF): Requests $5 billion to mobilize funds for immigration enforcement, critical mineral supply chains, and countering adversaries. Could also be used to provide targeted funding to allies. Compared to NSIP, the A1OF fund gives the administration greater discretion over how to use funds, with fewer congressional restrictions.
- National Security Investment Programs (NSIP): Proposes $0 for the NSIP account, and requests that the funds and authorities of this account be transferred to A1OF. (Created in the FY26 appropriations law, NSIP consolidated the remnants of three prior economic assistance accounts: Development Assistance (DA), the Economic Support Fund (ESF), and Assistance for Europe, Eurasia, and Central Asia (AEECA).)
