The White House
President George W. Bush
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For Immediate Release
Office of the Press secretary
February 3, 2003

Fact Sheet: President Bush's 2004 Budget

Today's Action

  • The President's FY 2004 budget, released today, will strengthen our economy, prosecute the war against terror, defend our nation and allow Americans to keep more of their own money. The budget also makes major new investments in top priorities - including education, Medicare, health care, homeland security, energy independence, the environment, compassion and the unemployed.

  • President Bush believes that the best way to hold down deficits is to promote pro-growth policies and control government spending. His budget holds the overall increase in government spending to 4% -- the same amount as the paychecks of America's families.

    Key Points on The President's FY 2004 Budget

    Strengthening the Economy: The President's budget includes his jobs and economic growth plan to speed the pace of America's economic recovery and get more Americans back to work.

    Winning the War on Terrorism: To address the needs of America's military and protect our nation, the budget provides $380 billion for our nation's military, a $15 billion or 4.2% increase.

    Securing the Homeland: The President's budget provides $41 billion for total homeland security spending. Excluding Department of Defense spending, the budget includes $35 billion for homeland security, a $2.5 billion or 7.6% increase that more than doubles funding over the past two years. The budget includes:

    Modernizing Medicare with Prescription Drug Coverage: The President's budget proposes to invest $400 billion over 10 years to strengthen and improve Medicare with prescription drug coverage.

    Excellence in Education: Last year, the President signed into law historic education reforms through the No Child Left Behind Act. The budget provides unprecedented levels of education funding to help strengthen America's schools. It includes $53.1 billion for education programs, an increase of $2.8 billion from FY 2003 and an increase of $3.2 billion over FY 2002. This funding represents an increase of 47% over FY 2000 and a 131% increase in education spending over the last 8 years. The budget includes $1.9 billion more for Pell Grants. The Budget strongly supports the No Child Left Behind Act with:

    Strengthening Health Care: The budget provides $89 billion in health care tax credits to expand access to health care. It also proposes the creation of new tax-free savings accounts which could be used for health care needs and long-term care.

    Improving the Environment: The President's budget builds on his strong commitment to protecting our environment through new technology, conservation, and responsible stewardship. It includes:

    Promoting Compassion: The President's budget includes proposals to help extend the America's compassion to helping our neediest neighbors at home and abroad. It includes:

    Budget Discipline: The best way to counter deficits is through stronger economic growth and spending discipline in Washington. This budget would hold spending growth to 4%, no faster than the growth of the average American families' paycheck.

    Budget Basics for FY 2004

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