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Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4366, a bill that will provide funding for military construction and the Department of Veterans Affairs.
During the last Congress, three trillion dollars was spent outside of the normal appropriations process. As spending soared, so did inflation.
There was damage done to the economy, and the work of the Appropriations Committee changed significantly over those two years.
That is why earlier this year, I asked Subcommittee Chairs to evaluate all of the funding in the pipeline.
When the President's budget finally arrived, I directed them to review each agency's budget – line-by-line.
I want to thank the Subcommittee Chairs for their work to identify ways to save hard-earned tax dollars.
These savings have allowed us to reduce overall spending without short-changing what is most important – national defense, homeland security, and veterans.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman, Mr. McGovern, and members of the Committee. I want to thank each of you for the opportunity to testify on the FY24 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs bill.
This is a good bill because it supports our troops and their families and the Nation's veterans.
We provide almost $800 million above the budget request for military construction and family housing.
We focus this funding to deter China's aggression in the Pacific and on barracks and child development centers.
We fully fund veterans' programs at the requested level, while strengthening our oversight of the VA.
In response to VA's actions, this bill includes the Hyde Amendment. This will ensure tax dollars are not used to fund elective abortions.
I know my friend and ranking member, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, opposes this provision and several others.
I am pleased to be here with my colleagues to present the Fiscal Year 2024 Interior bill.
I'd like to thank the Chairwoman for her strong support and leadership of the Committee. I appreciate the commitment and dedication it has taken to get us to this important step in the appropriations process.
I also want to recognize Ranking Member DeLauro and Ranking Member Pingree for their work on this bill. While we may not agree on some items in this bill, and there might be a little difference of opinion, I appreciate her commitment to the Subcommittee's issues, and I look forward to continuing to work with her over the coming months as we move the bill forward.
WASHINGTON – Today, the Full Committee met to consider the Fiscal Year 2024 bill for the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee. The measure was approved by the Committee with a vote of 33 to 27.
