US intelligence budget drops following NSA scandal

US intelligence agencies will see a 5% drop in funding under a proposed 2015 budget, officials said Thursday, March 6, after a year marked by controversy over far-reaching electronic spying. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said the requested budget for most of the country’s 17 spy services came to $45.6 billion for fiscal year 2015, which begins October 1. The proposed budget, which must be approved by Congress, is lower than the 2014 national intelligence program budget, at $48.2 billion. The Pentagon is also planning for a slight drop in funding for intelligence activities that support the military, requesting $13.3 billion for next fiscal year, officials said. The 2014 budget had allocated $14 billion for the military intelligence program.

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