Committee Releases FY24 Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill
WASHINGTON - Today, the House Appropriations Committee released the Fiscal Year 2024 bill for the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Subcommittee. The bill will be considered tomorrow, July 14th at 9:00 a.m. The markup will be live-streamed and can be found on the Committee's website.
The Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies appropriations bill provides net new spending of $58.383 billion for programs under the jurisdiction of the Subcommittee, which is $23.765 billion below the FY23 enacted level. The bill provides a non-defense discretionary total of $52.383 billion, which is $31.964 billion below the FY24 President's Budget Request and $23.527 billion below the FY23 enacted level, and a defense discretionary total of $6.293 billion, which is $238 million below the FY23 enacted level and $678.1 million below the FY24 President's Budget Request.
The bill reins in the Washington bureaucracy by right-sizing agencies and programs and directs that funding to support the fight against fentanyl and efforts to counter the People's Republic of China. Importantly, the bill utilizes the power of the purse to address the weaponization of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and bring an end to the overreach of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
Fiscal Year 2024 Commerce Justice Science and Related Agencies Bill
- Ends the abuses of power at the Department of Justice (DOJ) by:
- Holding the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) accountable for targeting everyday Americans by cutting its budget and mandating critical reforms;
- Reversing anti-Second Amendment overreach by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) by defunding the ATF's rules on pistol braces and privately made firearms;
- Defunding Attorney General Garland's October 4, 2021, memorandum to the FBI that targets parents speaking out at school board meetings;
- Defunding Executive Order 14092, which calls for an assault weapons ban; and
- Defunding efforts to federalize state and local policing practices.
- Reins in wasteful bureaucracy and enhances oversight and accountability by:
- Ensuring state and local law enforcement resources are used as intended, not to promote progressive ideologies;
- Eliminating more than 70 unnecessary and wasteful programs; and
- Consolidating Department of Justice grant accounts and increasing oversight of these grant programs and funds.
- Prioritizes our national security and supports state and local law enforcement by:
- Rejecting the Administration's request to halt reimbursements to law enforcement for the costs of incarcerating unauthorized criminal aliens;
- Mandating that the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) reinstate case completion performance metrics to increase immigration adjudications and hold immigration judges accountable;
- Maintaining strong support for law enforcement by preserving robust funding for Byrne JAG formula grants and COPS Hiring grants that assist state and local law enforcement agencies; and
- Focusing Department of Justice grant funding on programs that assist law enforcement in addressing the opioid crisis, eliminating the rape kit backlog, and preventing school violence, while ensuring this limited funding is used as intended.
- Counters the flow of fentanyl and other opioids by:
- Providing funding above the President's Budget Request for both the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Forces to enhance multi-agency efforts to combat transnational organized crime and reduce the availability of illicit drugs.
- Counters China and maintains America's competitive edge by:
- Mandating re-establishment of DOJ's China Initiative;
- Supporting the American research enterprise to counter China's increasing investments in basic research and technology development;
- Investing in emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, quantum, and advanced manufacturing;
- Supporting the critical Artemis program to advance American leadership in Space and counter China's malign ambitions; and
- Protecting U.S. research from Chinese theft by supporting the NSF's Office of Research Security Strategy and Policy and Office of Inspector General.
A summary of the bill is available here.
Bill text is available here.
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