Remarks
I would like to welcome everyone to our second hearing of the day – a hearing on the Fiscal Year 2024 budget request for the Department of Commerce Office of Inspector General. Thank you to our subcommittee members and to Inspector General Gustafson for being here today.
Inspectors General serve as independent watchdogs within government and are a critical resource for Congress and for taxpayers.
Inspector General Gustafson, your office's oversight of the Department of Commerce is critical to ensuring that the immense amount of mandatory and discretionary funding appropriated to the Department is spent in the best interest of the taxpayer and consistent with the Department's mission to foster economic growth and opportunity for all.
The fiscal year 2024 budget request for the Department of Commerce Office of Inspector General is $53 million, an increase of $5 million – or 9% – over the fiscal year 2023 enacted level.
The Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government will come to order. Welcome to our first subcommittee hearing of the 118th Congress.
Appearing before the Subcommittee today is Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young. Thank you for joining us this afternoon. We were looking forward to receiving testimony from Council of Economic Advisers Chair Cecilia Rouse but wish her well.
We are here today to discuss the Administration's Fiscal Year 2024 budget request and our Nation's economic outlook.
This hearing has not occurred in over a decade, and it could not be timelier as we are in the midst of great economic turmoil. It is of my opinion that the reckless spending and out-of-control regulatory expansion unleashed by President Biden and Democrats has pushed us into a recession. It has been anything but a transitory cycle.
Mr. Secretary, thank you for being here today to discuss the fiscal year 2024 budget request for the Department of State, and thank you for your service to our country.
Before I get to the budget, I want to start by raising concerns on what I believe have been serious blunders that have damaged relationships with our allies and emboldened some of the most dangerous, anti-American actors throughout the world.
Here are some examples.
The abrupt withdrawal from Afghanistan resulted in the creation of 13 new Gold Star families and the horrific abandonment of those who risked their lives to help us.
Now, women and girls are trapped in their homes, unable to receive an education, and are raped, maimed, or killed if they dare to attempt to earn a living, read a book, or walk outside without a male escort.
Good afternoon. Welcome.
Today's hearing is on the Army's fiscal year 2024 budget request for military construction and family housing.
It is a great pleasure to be here today with the Honorable Rachel Jacobson, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations, Energy, and Environment and Lieutenant General Kevin Vereen, Deputy Chief of Staff G9, Installation Management Command.
I had the opportunity to speak with Ms. Jacobson last week. We discussed challenges and opportunities for the Army in INDOPACOM as well as the importance of childcare facilities for our soldiers and their families. I look forward to continuing our discussion today.
Investing in facilities and infrastructure is critical to supporting our soldiers and their families. These investments directly impact the way our soldiers train, sleep, eat, and take care of their families. It is important to me that we continue investing in infrastructure.
The Defense Subcommittee will come to order.
Today, the Subcommittee will receive testimony from:
- the Honorable Lloyd Austin, Secretary of Defense;
- General Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff;
- and Undersecretary Mike McCord, the Department's Comptroller and CFO.
The Department of Defense is requesting $825 billion within this subcommittee's jurisdiction. This is a modest increase from fiscal year 2023 levels, particularly as we enter the middle of a decisive decade for the security and prosperity of our nation and the world.
In many ways, the Biden Administration has put the United States at a serious disadvantage.
The Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government will come to order. Welcome to our first subcommittee hearing of the 118th Congress.
Appearing before the Subcommittee today is Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young. Thank you for joining us this afternoon. We were looking forward to receiving testimony from Council of Economic Advisers Chair Cecilia Rouse but wish her well.
We are here today to discuss the Administration's Fiscal Year 2024 budget request and our Nation's economic outlook.
This hearing has not occurred in over a decade, and it could not be timelier as we are in the midst of great economic turmoil. It is of my opinion that the reckless spending and out-of-control regulatory expansion unleashed by President Biden and Democrats has pushed us into a recession. It has been anything but a transitory cycle.
I want to welcome Amanda Bennett, the CEO of the United States Agency for Global Media.
Ms. Bennett, you are at the helm of an agency that is tasked with providing free, independent information globally, including in the most repressive media environments.
The timing of this session, so early in the cycle of our hearings, should send a clear signal of the priority we place on this agency and its important mission.
It is no secret that I am a strong supporter of that mission. As a Cuban American with the strongest admiration for pro-democracy movements, I can attest to the importance of American-sponsored information and broadcasting in Cuba and around the world.
Congress's support for international broadcasting dates back eight decades, beginning with Voice of America during World War II.
The Committee will come to order.
Good morning and welcome to the first of our public witness hearing dedicated to American Indian and Alaska Native programs.
On a personal note, I am thrilled to return as Chairman of the Interior subcommittee for the 118th Congress. The critical issues of this subcommittee are near and dear to me and my home state of Idaho.
I look forward to working with Ranking Member Pingree to advance programs that help conserve and protect our nation's most critical natural, cultural, and environmental resources, and strengthen the Committee's longstanding efforts to increase the federal commitment to honor our treaties and trust responsibilities to American Indians and Alaska Natives.
The Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies will come to order.
I want to welcome everyone to our first Subcommittee hearing of the 118th Congress with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Inspector General. I am pleased to be joined today by the Subcommittee's distinguished Ranking Member, Mr. Bishop, and other Members on the Subcommittee as we begin the fiscal year 2024 process.
I want to welcome our witnesses today:
- Phyllis Fong, Inspector General, who is accompanied by:
- Steve Rickrode, Acting Assistant Inspector General for Audit;
- Jenny Rone, Assistant Inspector General for Analytics and Innovation; and,
- Kevin Tyrrell, Assistant Inspector General for Investigations.
Ms. Fong, it is good to see you again, and I look forward to hearing your testimony today.
Good morning, Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield. Welcome to the Subcommittee's first hearing of the 118th Congress on oversight of the United Nations.
While the President's Budget has been delayed, this Subcommittee has important oversight work that must be done to prepare for our next appropriations bill. This includes a review of our engagement at the United Nations where the United States is the largest donor providing over $12 billion annually.
This significant investment from the American taxpayer is not exempt from the expectation that we see U.S. interests being advanced.
The American people want to see a United Nations that supports, not undermines, our security and that of our allies and partners around the world. Unfortunately, the UN too often fails to deliver.
