Minority Fellowship Program Gets a $1M Increase

Before Congress left for holiday break, they passed all of the federal spending bills for the rest of FY2020. Congress is typically expected to pass each of the 12 spending bills by the end of September every year, but this year policy disagreements delayed the process. The president approved the bills, which came after two temporary continuing resolutions in October and November extended FY19 funding while Congress worked to reach an agreement.

NBCC had been diligently working to secure funding for many programs that fund counselor education and workforce development. Despite the political challenges of the process, we were successful in having funding for many programs increased. SAMHSA’s Minority Fellowship Program received a $1 million increase, bringing the program total to $14,169,000 in FY20. The Minority Fellowship Program is NBCC’s biggest appropriations priority, and we are excited the hard work of NBCC's Government & Legislative Affairs team has paid off.

Other programs, such as the Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training Program, also saw substantial increases. The following programs we have been advocating for received increases:

• Minority Fellowship Program (MFP): $14,169,000 (+$1,000,000 vs. FY19)
• Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training Program (BHWET): $102,000,000 (+$27,000,000)  
• Substance Use Disorder Workforce Loan Repayment Program: $12,000,000 (+$12,000,000)