On Sept. 21, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved a Fiscal Year 2012 funding bill (S. 1599) that includes $46 million for the Teaching American History (TAH) grants program at the Department of Education. However a draft House Appropriations Committee version of the bill released on Sept. 29 would eliminate funding for TAH.

The Teaching American History Grants program received $46 million in FY 11, but that funding went to existing TAH grantees.

The Senate Appropriations Committee also recently marked up the Fiscal Year 2012 Financial Services and General Government (FS&GG) funding bill (S. 1573) that includes $5 million for the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC).

This amount is $1.986 million less than the NHPRC received in FY ’11. However, it is the amount the Obama administration requested for FY ’12. As passed earlier this year the House Appropriations Committee’s version of the FS&GG FY ’12 bill only provides $1 million for the NHPRC.

The federal government continues to function on a week-long continuing resolution (CR) since the current fiscal year expires on September 30. When it returns from recess next week Congress is expected to consider a longer CR that will run until November 18.