Conference Report on H.R. Energy and Water, Legislative Branch, and Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act, 2019

Floor Speech

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Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 1059, I call up the conference report on the bill (H.R. 5895) making appropriations for energy and water development and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2019, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present the conference report for H.R. 5895.

This conference report includes the Energy and Water Development, Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Legislative Branch Appropriations bills for fiscal year 2019. It is a product of months of negotiations between the House and the Senate.

This conference report is a responsible compromise that addresses shared priorities: funding for programs that benefit all Americans, including national security, energy development programs and water resources infrastructure, care for veterans, and operations of the legislative branch. Critically, this conference report represents the next step toward fully funding the Federal Government for fiscal year 2019.

This is the first time since fiscal year 2017 that Congress will have passed any Appropriations bill before the end of the year and the first time in over a decade--since fiscal year 2007--that Congress will be sending more than one Appropriations bill to the President's desk before September 30.

We have done our best to repair a broken appropriations process. This is a welcome and long overdue return to regular order and fulfills our promise to the American people to deliver results.

Passage of this legislation also provides certainty to the Federal Government--most importantly, for our troops and their families, who rely on military infrastructure to sustain their quality of life and accomplish their missions, and for our veterans, who deserve full access to their benefits and healthcare.

It is my sincere hope that we will continue this progress with the consideration of additional conference reports.

The Energy and Water portion of the report provides $44.6 billion for Department of Energy, Army Corps of Engineers, and the Department of Defense's nuclear programs.

Investments in national security programs help our Nation maintain its strongest possible nuclear deterrence posture, support our Navy's nuclear-powered fleet, and keep nuclear materials out of the hands of terrorists.

And the bill also targets an array of energy programs that support our goal of energy independence and directs much-needed funds to water resources infrastructure across the country.

The Military Construction and Veterans Affairs portion of the report totals $98 billion in discretionary funding. This includes the largest dollar amount ever for the Department of Veterans Affairs, $86.5 billion, a substantial investment that will improve access to and quality of care for veterans.

Importantly, this also includes additional funding for the VA MISSION Act and will support ongoing care for our veterans through community care centers, caregivers, and other medical services. This funding is provided within the existing discretionary spending caps.

Also, the bill provides strong investments for our defense infrastructure and military installations. This will support the rebuilding of our Armed Forces, help counter threats and aggression abroad, and support our troops and military families.

The third portion of this conference report includes the Legislative Branch Appropriations bill. This legislation continues the operations of Congress and its support agencies, ensuring that Members of Congress are best able to serve the American people.

Within the total of $4.8 billion, provided for both the House and the Senate, funding is prioritized for security and safety within the Capitol complex, including increases for the Capitol Police.

The legislation helps the legislative branch improve its functions. Of note, for the first time, we hav included dedicated funding for paid internships, which will allow more young Americans and students from all backgrounds to serve Congress.

I want to express my deep gratitude to the chairs and ranking members of the three subcommittees who spearheaded this legislation--Energy and Water Chairman Simpson of Idaho and Ranking Member Kaptur of Ohio; Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Chairman Carter of Texas and Ranking Member Wasserman Schultz of Florida; and Legislative Branch Chairman Fortenberry of Nebraska and Ranking Member Ryan of Ohio--along with all our conferees.

I also want to especially thank Ranking Member Lowey for her service, support, and friendship throughout many years on the Appropriations Committee.

Lastly, I would like to thank our committee's hardworking professional and associate staff. Over the past months, they have been working without a break to complete negotiations and get this conference report and other reports to the floor. They are a remarkable group of men and women, and I salute them.

Support for this conference report today indicates that Congress is willing and able to get its work done on behalf of the American people on time, under regular order, and within our set budget limits.

Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote on this conference report, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN.

I would like to thank Mrs. Lowey for our close working relationship of well over 24 years.

I would like to take the opportunity to thank all the ranking members who put this package together here, the remarkable men and women who make up our professional staff on the Appropriations Committee, and our personal staff who dedicated most of their August, part of July, and certainly this part of September to doing the work of the people. I am enormously grateful to all of them for their hard work and their dedication.

Mr. Speaker, I salute my colleague, Mrs. Lowey, and all members and staff for their work.

Particularly, I'd like to thank:

Nancy Fox, Maureen Holohan, Shannon O'Keefe, Jason Gray, Marta Hernandez, Tammy Hughes, Rachel Kahler, Parker Van de Water, and Tom Doelp in the Front Office; Angie Giancarlo, Loraine Heckenberg, Perry Yates, and Amy Murphy on the Energy and Water Subcommittee; Sue Quantius; Sarah Young; and Kiya Batmanglidj from the MilCon/VA Subcommittee; Jenny Panone and Tim Monahan from the Legislative Branch Subcommittee.

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