Funding for intelligence programs takes slight dip

Congress appropriated $78.6 billion overall for civilian and military intelligence activities in 2011, a slight decline from the amount spent on the programs in 2010, Defense News reports.

Lawmakers appropriated $54.6 billion for national intelligence programs and $24 billion for military intelligence programs, $1.8 billion less than the previous year, according to separate statements issued Oct. 28 by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Defense Department.

The national intelligence program includes the CIA budget and support to national policymakers, and the military intelligence program funds battlefield commanders. Funding for major intelligence organizations, such as the National Security Agency and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, comes from both accounts.