Remarks

Madam Chair, I thank you for bringing forward the Fiscal Year 2022 Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies appropriations bill today.

I also want to thank the ranking member, Mr. Simpson, for his leadership on this subcommittee.

As a result of your work, this bill addresses the priorities of Members on both sides of the aisle and does many good things for the American people.

I want to thank the chair for presenting the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education bill.

Chair DeLauro unveils this bill today as the leader of our full committee and the subcommittee.

I know she has worked extremely hard to have the opportunity to hold both of these positions, and I have great respect for her dedication to these issues.

I also want to thank Mr. Cole, who serves as both the vice ranking member of the full committee and the ranking member of this subcommittee.

Madam Chair, thank you for yielding.

First, I want to thank Chairwoman Lee and Ranking Member Rogers for their work on this State and Foreign Operations bill.

I want to also thank the chair for including the full amount for Israel - $3.3 billion. Full funding makes it clear that the members of this committee are steadfast supporters of our great ally and partner.

Funding was also maintained at the current level for other key partners in the Middle East, such as Egypt and Jordan.

First, I want to recognize Chairwoman Pingree and Ranking Member Joyce for their work on putting this Interior and Environment bill together.

As a result of their efforts, this bill addresses priorities of Members on both sides of the aisle and does many good things for the conservation of our natural resources.

Even though the bill funds many shared priorities, I have concerns about our path forward.

The bill eliminates several long-standing, common-sense provisions that have had bipartisan support for many years.

Thank you, Chair DeLauro.

I appreciate the work that Chair Wasserman Schultz and Ranking Member Carter have done this year on the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs bill. Thank you for reaching across the aisle to fund many projects important to our Members.

Unfortunately, this bill is based on a funding framework that the Majority Party developed without Republican support.

This difference of opinion on both funding priorities and policy positions could slow down our appropriations process this year.

I would like to Chair Roybal-Allard and Ranking Member Fleischmann for your work on this Homeland Security appropriations bill for fiscal year 2022.

I know that you both try to work together when it is possible, but unfortunately, there are just too many differences of opinion in this year's bill, and I oppose it in its current form.

To put it simply, the bill proposes funding levels and policies that fail to address the illegal immigration crisis we are currently experiencing in this country.

Madam Chair, thank you for yielding.

These spending allocations will increase discretionary spending by hundreds of billions of dollars to an all-time high of $1.5 trillion.

This nearly 9% increase above fiscal year 2021 comes at a time of record-high deficits and debt:

Thank you, Madam Chair, for yielding.

First, I want to recognize Chairman Quigley and Ranking Member Womack for their work on putting this Financial Services bill together.

In many cases, the bill before us reflects priorities of Members on both sides of the aisle, such as support for small businesses, drug control programs, and counterterrorism and financial intelligence efforts.