Biden Aims to Boost DOL Funding for Enforcement, Virus Response

President Joe Biden proposed spending $14.2 billion on the U.S. Labor Department for the 2022 fiscal year, a 14% increase in the agency’s current annual budget.

The administration’s opening bid for higher DOL funding was aimed at several areas of pandemic workforce recovery. The request, which represents $1.7 billion above the prior-year level, was part of the White House’s preliminary “skinny budget” that was released Friday and outlined topline spending goals for Cabinet agencies.

While the ultimate spending decisions will rest with Congress, the Biden administration wants to spread a funding increase between its workplace enforcement agencies to overcome staffing ...