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Source: US SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE, 7/28/22
Senate Appropriations
Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Thursday released the Chairman’s mark
of the 12 senate appropriations bills. The nearly $1.7 trillion fiscal
year 2023 appropriations package includes $653 billion in non-defense
discretionary spending, a 10.1 percent increase over fiscal year 2022; $850
billion in defense discretionary spending, an 8.7 percent increase over fiscal
year 2022 and consistent with the bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act
(NDAA) passed by the House; and $118.7 billion for VA medical care, a 22
percent increase over fiscal year 2022. The package also includes $21
billion in emergency supplemental funding to provide the necessary resources to
prepare for the next phase of the COVID-19 pandemic and to address other
emerging diseases that pose a significant threat to public health.Leahy said: “These bills are an investment in the American people that promote affordable housing, help families put food on the table, support the education and care of our children and young people, combat climate change, improve health care access, and invest in our communities. It is my hope that by releasing these bills, and making clear what the priorities of Senate Democrats are, we can take a step closer toward reaching a bipartisan compromise after months of stalled negotiations. The stakes of inaction are too high to not complete our work. The burden of inflation would make a long-term continuing resolution untenable with grave consequences for communities and families across the country and for our national security. It is my goal to finish our work before the end of the 117th Congress to avoid these consequences. I look forward to continuing to work with my dear friend, Vice Chairman Shelby, and I encourage good faith, bipartisan negotiations on toplines to resume with the urgency that this moment requires.” Brief highlights of the package include:
- Taking action to address the
horrific and wrong Supreme Court Dobbs decision
by providing resources to help women where abortion is restricted access
care in states where abortion remains legal and protected, eliminates the
Hyde and Weldon amendments, and provides significant increases for
reproductive health care programs.
- Provides billions of dollars to
address the climate crisis, including $2 billion to support FEMA efforts
to incorporate climate adaptation, $1.6 billion for the Green Climate
Fund, and nearly $4 billion invested in energy efficiency and renewable
energy.
- Expands access to affordable
housing by investing billions of dollars in constructing new homes,
lowering the cost of rent, reducing heating and cooling costs, and
provides the resources to help house hundreds of thousands of people
experiencing homelessness in our country.
- Supports efforts to address the
ongoing opioid and substance abuse crisis, which dramatically worsened
during the pandemic and claimed 108,000 lives last year.
- Spurs innovation by investing in
science, research and development including $10.3 billion for the National
Science Foundation, and $48 billion for the National Institutes of Health.
- Invests in the education and care
of our children and young people by providing $20.137 billion for Title
I-A grants, $12.036 billion for Head Start, and $7.165 for Child Care
Development Block Grants among other investments.
- Expands access to health care and
mental health care including $10.5 billion for the Centers for Disease
Control, and $1.42 billion for the Mental Health Block Grant.
- Tackles food insecurity by fully
funding benefits for the 43.5 million Americans who access the
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) every month.
- Provides billions of dollars to
respond to natural disasters.
These investments and others advance important policy priorities
and help American families with rising costs of living as a result of
inflation. It helps families put food on the table, make rent and
mortgage payments, and reduces the cost of childcare and higher education. Enacting full year bills as soon as possible is
imperative. A long-term continuing resolution, which continues prior
fiscal year funding levels, during the record inflationary pressures the
country is currently experiencing would result in devastating cuts to programs
that the American people rely on and for our national security. For
example, cost increases have decreased the purchasing power of LIHEAP and
increased the cost burden on low-income families of heating and cooling their
homes. Food price increases have strained senior nutrition programs,
which were already struggling under increased demand in the wake of the
pandemic. And the rise in the cost of labor and building materials
reduced the purchasing power of HOME funds by an estimated 2,500 housing
units. Passing a continuing resolution does nothing to address these and
other critical shortfalls. The 12 bills released today meet these needs. A topline summary of all 12 bills prepared by the office of
Chairman Leahy is available HERE. A summary of the emergency COVID supplemental is available HERE. Below are links to the legislative text, explanatory statement,
and a summary for each of the Fiscal Year 2023 appropriations bills: Agriculture: Bill Text Explanatory Statement Bill Summary For more of this story, click here.
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