Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2024
Floor Speech
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Mrs. HINSON. Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman from Arkansas for yielding me the time to speak on this very important piece of legislation today and for his leadership on this bill. It is tough to craft a bill that funds the priorities of the American people in a way that is targeted and respects taxpayers, and I appreciate the gentleman's approach to do that in a very meaningful way.
Mr. Chair, it is why I am supporting this bill here today, the fiscal year 2024 Financial Services and General Government appropriations bill.
This bill delivers on the promises that we have made to the American people. We are reining in out-of-control spending and regulation. We are restoring accountability for taxpayers. We are deweaponizing the Federal Government.
Additionally, as the chairman mentioned, we are prioritizing national security against our foreign adversaries, both in dealing with the border and also in dealing with adversaries like China.
This bill promotes a Federal Government that works for the American people. We are ensuring that bureaucrats who have been abusing the COVID-19 telework policies and are still working from home actually go back to work and get back in the office like America is. They need to start putting in 100 percent effort for the taxpayers that pay their salary.
I am not sure how many of my colleagues here in the Chamber, Mr. Chair, are aware of the GAO report that came out over the summer, but it flagged that 17 of 24 Federal agencies here in Washington, D.C., were only using, on average, about 25 percent of their office space.
Taxpayers fund the bill for these offices. It is $7 billion a year. The lights were on, but no one was home. We need to make sure that they are putting 100 percent effort in for the taxpayers that pay their salary.
I am sure all of our offices are getting the same calls mine are about reductions in government services, and we need to make sure they are giving 100 percent.
This bill also restores accountability by reining in rogue overreaching agencies like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that will now be subject to congressional oversight and will answer to the American taxpayer rather than being able to pursue a partisan agenda that hurts our small businesses.
This bill also protects American families and small businesses by rescinding funding for President Biden's proposals to supercharge an army of IRS agents, while maintaining those very important taxpayer service operations. We don't want to see a reduction in services for our taxpayers, and when they are calling, they should not be getting a dial tone.
Our bill also protects Iowa farmers from onerous regulations like the SEC's climate disclosure rule and the expansive Scope 3 emissions disclosure requirement. This would be disastrous for producers not only in my district but around the country. It would bury our hardworking farmers, who feed and fuel the world, in paperwork and compliance costs.
We are also taking strong steps to ensure that we are bolstering national security against threats from our adversaries, like the Chinese Communist Party. I also serve on the Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party. I think this is of utmost importance, Mr. Chair. We need to protect taxpayer resources from supporting the Wuhan Institute of Virology or any other laboratory operated by the CCP.
Finally, this includes my language to require the GSA to investigate the status of Chinese surveillance equipment on Federal property. It supports efforts to remove that telecom equipment from U.S. networks.
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Mrs. HINSON. Mr. Chair, I think this really hits the mark in investing in the priorities I continue to hear about from my constituents. It is why I am proud to support it.
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