March 3, 2015
Foreign Affairs Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO):
Background and Current Status

Fund. Congress included limited transfer authority between
Near the end of the 113th Congress, Members examined
OCO accounts subject to regular notification requirements.
foreign affairs funding designated as Overseas Contingency
Operations (OCO) for possible use as Ebola emergency
In the FY2013 full-year continuing appropriations (P.L.
funding, to combat the Islamic State (IS), and other
113-6, Div. F, Title VII, Sec. 1707-1708), Congress did not
budgetary reasons. Funds that are designated as emergency
specify additional OCO-recipient countries except for
or OCO are effectively exempt from the spending limits
Jordan. Congress did provide limited transfer authority of
established by the Budget Control Act of 2011 (P.L. 112-
OCO funds, subject to regular notification procedures.
25, BCA). Some Members have suggested that this
exemption provides agencies with additional budget
Figure 1. Overseas Contingency Operations,
cushioning and flexibility, allowing their overall funding to
FY2012-FY2015
exceed the spending caps.
Within the Consolidated and Further Continuing
Appropriations Act, 2015 (Div. J, Title VIII of P.L. 113-
235), Congress appropriated $9.26 billion for State
Department, Foreign Operations and Related Programs
OCO funds, or 18% of the total foreign affairs funding that
year. It also continued multiyear spending and broad
transfer authorities, making OCO use somewhat flexible.
The amended FY2015 OCO request of $7.8 billion
represented about 15% of the total foreign affairs request
for that year.
Background
The foreign affairs agencies began requesting OCO funding

in FY2012, distinguishing between what is referred to as
enduring (ongoing costs) versus extraordinary, temporary
Source: Department of State Congressional Budget Justifications,
costs of State and USAID in the frontline states of Iraq,
FY2014, FY2015, and P.L. 113-235. The totals enacted are net
Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Many view this approach as
rescissions.
similar to the annual emergency supplemental
appropriations to support the Global War on Terrorism
For FY2014 (P.L. 113-76, Title VIII), Congress provided
four accounts with no-year (available until expended) OCO
(GWOT) in the frontline states during the George W. Bush
Administration.
funds, but made most foreign affairs OCO funds available
for two years—or until September 30, 2015 (see Table 1).
Congress also expanded the terms of transfer authority,
Congress, having provided OCO funds for the Department
of Defense (DOD) earlier, adopted this approach for foreign
providing greater flexibility among certain accounts. It also
authorized that transfers from those accounts be available to
affairs, although it never permanently defined its uses in
International Disaster Assistance (IDA) and Migration and
statute. Since 2012, Congress has appropriated more OCO
funds than were requested each year and authorized its use
Refugee Assistance (MRA), subject to certain dollar
amounts or percentages, and regular notification
in additional countries (see Figure 1). In contrast, President
procedures. FY2014 OCO-funded activities were in Iraq,
Obama first sought OCO funds for a country other than the
three frontline states in the FY2015 request when he
Afghanistan, Pakistan, Jordan, Lebanon, the Central
African Republic, and Somalia.
requested OCO funds for Syria.
For FY2015, although Congress did not provide specific
For the first foreign affairs OCO appropriation, Congress
OCO funds for countering IS, as was requested, it did
provided FY2012 OCO funds (P.L. 112-74, Title VIII) for a
provide an increase in OCO funds in many accounts with
wide range of recipients beyond the three frontline states,
including Yemen, Somalia, Kenya, and the Philippines. In
language such as “for other assistance,” “for other areas of
unrest,” or “for extraordinary costs, including those
addition to country-specific uses, Congress also
resulting from conflict.” Congress continued certain
appropriated funds for the Global Security Contingency
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Foreign Affairs Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO): Background and Current Status
transfer authority and multiyear availability of most OCO
OCO/IDA funds and the nearly $1.3 billion of OCO/MRA
funds.
funds, or transfer authority for U.S. overseas Ebola
response, rather than a large emergency supplemental. The
Current Funding and Issues
four congressional defense committees had permitted a
reprogramming of DOD’s OCO-designated funds for its
Enacted OCO funding levels for FY2015 are as follows:
Ebola-related activities, so a precedent to use OCO for a
non-GWOT-related activity existed.
Table 1. FY2015 OCO Funding Levels
($ million)
The 113th Congress agreed to enact Ebola Emergency
Total 9,258.0
funding separate from OCO within the FY2015
appropriations law. Title IX provided $2.5 billion for the
Funds available until September 30, 2016
State Department and USAID’s Ebola efforts in FY2015.
Diplomatic and Consular Programs (D&CP)
1,350.8
OCO Amendment for IS
Office of Inspector General (OIG)
56.9.
On November 10, the Obama Administration submitted
International Broadcasting Operations
10.7
amendments to the FY2015 OCO request for both DOD ($5
USAID’s Operating Expenses (OE)
125.5
billion) and the Department of State ($520 million) to
counter IS. The amendments would have been in addition to
Transition Initiatives (TI)
20.0
the $58.6 billion for DOD and $7.3 billion for State, thus
Complex Crises Fund (CCF)
30.0
making the total FY2015 OCO request $71.4 billion, of
which $7.8 billion would fund foreign affairs accounts:
Economic Support Fund (ESF)
2,114.3
D&CP, ESF, FMF, PKO, IDA, and International
International Narcotics Control and Law
443.2
Broadcasting.
Enforcement (INCLE):
For FY2016, the Administration is requesting $7.05 billion
Nonproliferation, Anti-terrorism, Demining,
99.2
for OCO funds, including some Syria-related funds and
and Related Programs (NADR)
some to support U.S. efforts against the Islamic State.
Peacekeeping Operations (PKO)
328.7
OCO and Spending Limit Implications
Foreign Military Financing (FMF)
866.4
Funds available until expended
Through FY2021, the BCA imposes limits on discretionary
spending and provides for adjustments to those limits for
Conflict Stabilization Operations (CSO)
15.0
funds designated as OCO or emergency requirements.
Embassy Security, Construction and
260.8
When the House and Senate draft the budget resolutions
Maintenance (ESCM)
and the appropriations subcommittees consider funding for
DOD and foreign affairs, OCO can be used to provide
International Disaster Assistance (IDA)
1,335.0
funds that are effectively not subject to those spending
Migration and Refugee Assistance (MRA)
2,127.1
limits, even if the funds have only a tangential relationship
to the war on terrorism. In the FY2015 budget process, for
One-year funding
example, some questioned the Senate’s increased use of
OCO funds over the previous fiscal year, asserting it was
Contributions to International Organizations
74.4
(CIO)
done to free up discretionary funding for other agency
budgets and still meet the FY2015 limit of $1.014 trillion.
Source: Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act,
2015 (P.L. 113-235, Div. J, Title VIII).
The President’s FY2016 request seeks to raise the BCA
overall spending limits beyond the OMB-estimated $1.016
OCO for Aid to Ebola-Stricken Countries
trillion. If agreed to by Congress, this could reduce pressure
on enduring funds while possibly reducing OCO funds.
On November 5, 2014, the Administration requested a total
How this might affect the State, Foreign Operations
of $6.2 billion in a comprehensive emergency supplemental
FY2016 appropriations, however, remains to be seen.
package to address the Ebola crisis. Of that, nearly $3
billion would have been for foreign affairs accounts within
More Information
the State, Foreign Operations appropriations.
For more information on the foreign affairs budget, see
Prior to availability of FY2015 funds, State/USAID used
CRS Report R43901, State, Foreign Operations, and
enduring funds in IDA and the Global Health (GHP)
Related Programs: FY2016 Budget Overview.
accounts within State-Foreign Operations appropriations,
and Title II of Food for Peace within the Agriculture
Susan B. Epstein, sepstein@crs.loc.gov, 7-6678
Appropriations.

Some lawmakers looked into the possibility of using an
IF10143
expanded OCO or a portion of the $924.2 million of
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