Remarks

Thank you, Chairman Carter, for presenting the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs bill, the first appropriations bill we will consider for Fiscal Year 2024.

I appreciate the work that you have done on this bill.

With our markups this week, we will demonstrate how we are able to reduce overall spending without impacting our commitment to veterans, national defense, or homeland security.

This bill before us fully and responsibly funds veterans' health care.

It will ensure our veterans get the medical treatment they deserve.

It also rejects the Administration's proposal to shift resources to the mandatory side.

This bill covers those costs in the annual discretionary budget.

The bill also prioritizes our nation's heroes by:

Welcome to the Subcommittee markup of the Fiscal Year 2024 Legislative Branch Appropriations bill. Welcome Ranking Member DeLauro and Ranking Member Espaillat.

Colleagues, as we go into our last Subcommittee meeting, I want to say thank you for your hard work and collegial attitude and particularly the cooperation and patience of our Ranking Member, Mr. Espaillat.

I also want to thank the Subcommittee staff on both sides. From the Majority, Michelle Reinshuttle and Jackie Ripke, and from the Minority, Faye Cobb and Raquel Spencer. Thank you all for your due diligence and hard work.

Thank you, Chairman Amodei, for presenting the Fiscal Year 2024 Legislative Branch Appropriations bill. I appreciate the work you have done on this bill.

The bill funds the many important functions of the Legislative Branch, including:

The Subcommittee will come to order. I'd like to remind everyone that we will follow the five-minute rule for opening remarks, questions, and comments. Members will be recognized in order of seniority based on who is seated at the beginning of the hearing rotating between the parties. Members that arrive after the gavel will be recognized in the order of arrival.

I would like to welcome everybody to the Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government.

I would like to welcome back to the Subcommittee, Chair of the Federal Trade Commission, Lina Khan.

As we all know, Congress is locked in a fierce debate regarding the fiscal trajectory of our nation.

Good afternoon.

The subcommittee will come to order. Without objection, the Chair is authorized to declare a recess at any time.

We welcome everyone to this morning's hearing, and I will begin by recognizing myself for an opening statement.

I'd like to welcome our witness today, the Honorable Christopher Wray, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Director Wray has served in this role since August of 2017. He oversees an agency of over 35,000 people, including special agents, intelligence analysts, language specialists, scientists, and information technology specialists.

The FY24 budget request for FBI salaries and expenses is $11.3 billion, with $6.7 billion of that amount – about 60% – designated as defense spending. This is a 6% increase above the FY23 enacted level for salaries and expenses.

Good morning.

The Subcommittee will come to order. Without objection, the Chair is authorized to declare a recess at any time.

We welcome everyone to this morning's hearing, and I will begin by recognizing myself for an opening statement.

Administrator Milgram, I would like to welcome you to the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Subcommittee today. I'd like to extend our heartiest relations with you. You are here to testify regarding the Drug Enforcement Administration's fiscal year 2024 budget request.

As we all know, the DEA plays a critical role in combating drug trafficking, reducing drug-related violence, and protecting our communities from the devastating effects of drug abuse.

The subcommittee will come to order.

Today, we welcome testimony from the Honorable Billy Nolen, Acting Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration. Administrator Nolen, I understand that you will be leaving the FAA this summer, after serving both as FAA's chief safety officer and as the head of the agency during a critical and dynamic post-pandemic period.

We've seen air travel come roaring back to life, reaching pre-pandemic traffic far more quickly than anyone expected.

But these past several months have also been challenging, from near misses on our runways to the January outage of the Notice to Air Missions System (NOTAMs) that led to the first nationwide ground stop in more than 20 years.

By all accounts, your steady hand and safety expertise have served our nation well during this critical period. I know safety is your number one priority. It is also our number one priority.

Good morning. I am pleased to welcome today the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration to talk about the Provider Relief Fund and healthcare workforce issues in general.

The Provider Relief Fund was originally created in the CARES Act to reimburse health care providers for increased expenses or lost revenue as a result of COVID lockdowns and COVID treatments.

I think the original intent of the Fund was commendable. We wanted to maintain a robust, high-quality healthcare system in the face of a novel pandemic. We also needed to ensure that providers were able to continue care, despite the many challenges and unknowns posed by COVID.