"Department of Justice FY 2013 Budget Request"

The title of this post is the headline of this official Justice Department news release, which carries this lengthy subheading: "President’s Request Identifies Savings and Efficiencies, Sustains National Security Programs, Upholds Traditional Missions, Renews Focus on Financial and Mortgage Fraud, and Enforcement of Civil Rights While Maintaining State, Local and Tribal Support." Here are snippets from the release:

Attorney General Eric Holder announced today that President Obama’s FY 2013 Budget proposal totaling $27.1 billion for the Department of Justice identifies over $1 billion in efficiencies, savings and rescissions while providing resources to sustain critical national security programs, uphold the department’s traditional missions with an increased focus on financial and mortgage fraud and civil rights enforcement, invest in prisons and detention capacity, and assist our state, local and tribal law enforcement partners. The request represents a 0.4 percent decrease in budget authority from the FY 2012 enacted level....

The $27.1 billion budget request includes program increases for critical administration priorities, including $55 million to investigate and prosecute financial and mortgage crimes; $31.8 million to increase funding for traditional missions, including $5 million in new money to prevent human trafficking, hate crimes and police misconduct; and $141.2 million for prisons and detention to ensure prisoners and detainees are confined in secure facilities. The budget addresses the federal prison population by allowing eligible inmates to earn sentence reductions for good behavior and participation in certain reentry programs, freeing up federal prison space and reducing long-term costs. In addition, the budget provides $4 billion to sustain the department’s critical national security mission and nearly $2 billion in funding to maintain security along the Southwest Border. Finally, the budget continues to foster valued partnerships through state, local and tribal assistance to enhance public safety, protect women and children, and reduce recidivism.

The Department of Justice’s key priorities include:

• $4 billion to sustain national security; 
• $55 million increase for investigating and prosecuting financial and mortgage fraud; 
• $31.8 million increase to uphold traditional law enforcement, immigration and litigation-related missions; 
• $8.6 billion for federal prisons and detention; 
• $2 billion to maintain assistance to state, local and tribal law enforcement; 
• Over $1 billion in administrative efficiencies, programmatic savings redirections in grant programs and rescissions from balances.