When did Congress approve money to Israel for war
Executive summary
Congress approved an emergency supplemental package for Israel in April 2024 that included roughly $14.3 billion in military assistance and about $9.2 billion for humanitarian purposes, on top of the standing 2016 Memorandum of Understanding that commits roughly $3.8 billion per year to Israeli security assistance through 2028 (Congress approved the emergency supplemental in April 2024 and the MOU figures cover FY2019–2028) [1] [2]. Subsequent votes and measures in the spring of 2024 — including a House passage on May 16, 2024 of H.R.8369 pressing the Administration to use congressionally appropriated funds and to speed transfers — further shaped how and when those monies could flow to Israel [3] [4].
1. Congress’s April 2024 emergency supplemental: the headline numbers and legal framing
In April 2024 lawmakers approved an emergency FY2024 supplemental that Congress tallied as roughly $14.3 billion in emergency military assistance for Israel and approximately $9.2 billion for humanitarian assistance; the package was designated emergency spending so it was exempt from discretionary spending caps and intended to supply munitions, defense systems, and related support in response to the October 7, 2023 attacks and the ensuing conflict [1] [5] [6].
2. How that April approval fit into existing, multi‑year commitments
The April emergency funding was layered on top of a long‑standing U.S.–Israel security framework: under the 2016 Memorandum of Understanding the United States provides about $3.8 billion per year in security assistance and missile defense funding for fiscal years 2019 through 2028, a separate, congressionally overseen stream that continued to apply even as Congress moved the supplemental package in 2024 [2].
3. Votes, bills and congressional oversight: May actions and reporting requirements
Beyond the April appropriation, the House on May 16, 2024 passed H.R.8369 — the Israel Security Assistance Support Act — which among other provisions called on the Administration to obligate unobligated Israel assistance funds, to report monthly on security assistance since October 7, 2023, and to not withhold defense items/services funded in FY2024 or earlier; the measure reflects congressional impatience with how and when the Administration was approving or delivering materiel even after congressional appropriation [3] [2].
4. Implementation versus appropriation: timing of actual deliveries and later releases
Appropriation by Congress does not automatically equal immediate transfer of specific weapons or cash; the State and Defense Departments decide transfers and may use emergency authorities or inventories to accelerate shipments, and some transfers have been formally or informally notified to Congress outside regular review timelines [7] [8]. The lag between congressional approval and physical release is visible in August 2024 reporting that the State Department intended to release $3.5 billion of the Congressional supplemental — funds that Congress had appropriated months earlier in April — underscoring the distinction between congressional approval and departmental execution [9] [1].
5. Competing narratives and limits of the public record
Reporting and official documents offer two complementary views: Congress authorized large emergency sums in April 2024 and pushed further oversight and mandates in May 2024 [1] [3], while executive-branch practices — using emergency authorities, stockpiles, and varying notification practices — have at times accelerated or delayed particular transfers and drawn criticism from members of both parties [8] [7]. Available public sources document the April appropriations, the standing MOU, and later congressional measures, but granular, public accounting of exactly which weapons or funds moved on which dates often remains classified or reported only after departmental notification, a limitation the public record still shows [2] [8].