December 10: The US appropriated $1.182 billion for international organizations in its 2005 spending budget, FY2005, including $490 million for UN peacekeeping assessments. US dues for peacekeeping, however, are estimated at $1.3 billion and there are no measures in the bill to make up for the discrepancy between actual and estimated dues. In September of 2004, the Senate version of FY2005 also suggested the privatization of peacekeeping forces. The Senate panel was quick to criticize the UN, claiming that "private companies can carry out effective peacekeeping missions for a fraction of the funding the United Nations requires."
November 24: United Nations Controller Jean-Pierre Halbwachs tells the General Assembly Fifth Committee that verbal commitments to the UN's international criminal tribunals cannot take the place of financial contributions, as member state arrears for the tribunals have led to ineffectiveness and hiring freezes. Tribunal judges have also complained that the financial crisis has a "devastating effect" on the judicial process.
November 2: Secretary General Kofi Annan proposes a $97 million unified security plan, which would include $28 million for security renovations in the New York headquarters and $35 million for UN field offices. Member states were concerned about who would bear the costs of the plan, estimated at $300 million over two years.
October 27: The UN Office of Internal Oversight Services says it saved $26 million by formally reviewing budgets such as peacekeeping mission spending for cases of fraud or poor financial planning, but wants more independence from the UN to better monitor financial crises and staff issues. The auditing office reports it saves an average $31 million per year.
October 22: Under Secretary General for Management Catherine Bertini tells the Fifth Committee in regards to the UN financial situation that "We have progress, but we also still have problems and concerns based on the fact that we still do not have enough Member States paying in full and on time." Though she commented that the situation had improved from 2003, it was far from fixed.
July 16, 2004: For the third consecutive year, the Bush administration is withholding $34 million appropriated for the UN Population Fund(UNFPA). The White House contends that UNFPA programs violate the Kemp-Kasten Amendment, a 20-year-old law forbidding US aid to any agency that "supports or participates in the management of coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization." To date, the US has failed to uncover any evidence of "coercive practices" by UNFPA.
July 8, 2004: UN Under Secretary General Jose Antonio Ocampo announces the launch of a study looking into global taxes as an alternative source of development aid funding. Proposals include a carbon tax on fuel use, a 'Tobin tax' on currency transactions, and a levy on international sales of weapons. Ocampo will present conclusions and recommendations to the UN General Assembly in September 2004.
