Remarks
The subject of today’s hearing is the Fiscal Year 2026 budget requests for the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the Government Publishing Office (GPO), and the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).
I’d like to thank Ranking Member Espaillat, our Committee Members, Comptroller General Dodaro, Director Halpern and Director Swagel for being here today.
I’d also like to thank each and every one of your staff for the work they do to help Congress and the entire government function in an effective and efficient manner.
I’d like to thank Ranking Member Espaillat and our subcommittee members for being here today.
Chief Manger, welcome back. While we know you are looking forward to retirement, we appreciate your willingness to extend your time with us while we search for your successor. We look forward to your testimony today.
The purpose of today’s hearing is to review the United States Capitol Police Fiscal Year 2026 budget request, which is $9.67 million, a 20% increase over the enacted FY 2025 CR. The requested funding supports continued growth to both sworn and civilian personnel, nearly 14% over FY 2025 levels and an increase of nearly 26% in general expenses.
Today’s hearing is on the quality of life for our enlisted soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians, and their families.
The five witnesses at the table represent the highest enlisted level of leadership for their respective branches.
I am pleased that we are having this hearing again as we begin the Fiscal Year 2026 cycle. This group’s insight is critical. This hearing is a great opportunity to identify areas where we can be more helpful to our service members and their families.
The subject of today’s hearing is the Fiscal Year 2026 budget request for the Architect of the Capitol and the Library of Congress.
I’d like to thank Ranking Member Espaillat, Committee Members, and our two main witnesses, the Architect of the Capitol, Mr. Thomas Austin, and the Librarian of Congress, Dr. Carla Hayden for being here today.
Dr. Hayden is joined today by Ms. Shira Perlmutter the Register of Copyrights and Director of the U.S. Copyright Office and Ms. Karen E. Donfried, Director of the Congressional Research Service. Both of their testimonies have been submitted for the record, and Members are welcome to address questions to either, in addition to Dr. Hayen.
I want to welcome you all to our hearing today to assess the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, commonly referred to as PEPFAR. I would first like to introduce our witnesses.
Ambassador Mark Dybul is a Professor in the Department of Medicine at Georgetown University Medical Center where he serves as Chief Strategy Officer of the Center for Global Health Practice and Impact. He is also Chair of the Board of Purpose Africa. Ambassador Dybul played a lead role in founding the PEPFAR program during the Bush Administration and served as the Executive Director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria.
The Subcommittee on National Security, Department of State, and Related Programs will come to order. Good morning. I want to welcome everyone to the Subcommittee’s Member Day hearing. Before we begin, I want to take a moment to welcome our new subcommittee Ranking Member, and my dear friend, Lois Frankel. While we certainly don’t agree on everything, I cannot think of a better partner in leading this subcommittee. We also have several new members of the subcommittee who will add tremendous expertise. It’s a terrific group and I am really looking forward to the year ahead.
