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Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Title X (Public Health Service Act) Family Planning Program


Angela Napili
Information Research Specialist

The federal government provides grants for voluntary family planning services through the Family Planning Program, Title X of the Public Health Service Act, codified at 42 U.S.C. § 300 to § 300a-6. The program, enacted in 1970, is the only domestic federal program devoted solely to family planning and related preventive health services. Title X is administered through the Office of Population Affairs (OPA) under the Office of Public Health and Science in the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS).

Although the authorization for Title X ended with FY1985, funding for the program has continued to be provided through appropriations bills for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS-Education). Within DHHS, Title X receives its funding through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) account.

P.L. 111-322, the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011, as amended, provides temporary FY2011 funding through March 4, 2011, at the FY2010 rate of operations and under the same conditions as in FY2010. These conditions include that Title X funds not be spent on abortions, that all pregnancy counseling be nondirective, and that funds not be spent on promoting or opposing any legislative proposal or candidate for public office. Grantees must also certify that they encourage “family participation” when minors decide to seek family planning services, and must certify that they counsel minors on how to resist attempted coercion into sexual activity. Appropriations statute also clarifies that family planning providers are not exempt from state notification and reporting laws on child abuse, child molestation, sexual abuse, rape, or incest. H.R. 1, the Full- Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011, would eliminate funding for Title X for the remainder of FY2011.

The President’s FY2012 Budget requests $327.356 million for Title X, the same as the FY2011 Budget Request. It would be a 3% increase over the FY2010 level of $317.491 million.

The law (42 U.S.C. § 300a-6) prohibits the use of Title X funds in programs where abortion is a method of family planning. According to OPA, family planning projects that receive Title X funds are closely monitored to ensure that federal funds are used appropriately and that funds are not used for prohibited activities such as abortion. The prohibition on abortion does not apply to all the activities of a Title X grantee, but only to activities that are part of the Title X project. A grantee’s abortion activities must be “separate and distinct” from the Title X project activities.

Several bills addressing Title X have been introduced in the 112
thCongress. H.R. 217, the Title X Abortion Provider Prohibition Act, and S. 96, the Title X Family Planning Act, would prohibit Title X grants to abortion-performing entities. H.R. 408 and S. 178, both called the Spending Reduction Act of 2011, would eliminate the Title X program. H.R. 1 would eliminate funding for Title X for the remainder of FY2011.Three amendments (335, 386 and 505) to H.R. 1 would strike the language eliminating funds for Title X. Amendment no. 335 to H.R. 1 would maintain FY2011 funding to Title X at the FY2010 level of $317.491 million. Amendment no. 11 to H.R. 1 would prohibit the bill=s funds from being made available “for any purpose” to the Planned Parenthood Federation of America or to any of 102 Planned Parenthood affiliates and offices listed in the amendment.


Date of Report: February 16, 2011
Number of Pages: 21
Order Number: RL33644
Price: $29.95

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