Majority News Releases
SUMMARY: Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
Washington, D.C. - The fiscal year 2022 appropriations bill for the Department of Agriculture and Food and Drug Administration provides discretionary funding of $25.855 billion, which is an increase of $2.5 billion over fiscal year 2021 enacted levels. U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Chair of the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Subcommittee, said: "This bipartisan legislation is the product of Democrats and Republicans working together to… Continue Reading
08.04.21
SUMMARY: Energy and Water and Related Agencies Fiscal Year 2022 Appropriations Bill
Washington, D.C. - The Energy and Water Development fiscal year 2022 appropriations bill totals $53.625 billion in discretionary budget authority, $1.873 billion more than fiscal year 2021 and equal to the President's request. The bill provides $10.662 billion to improve the nation's water infrastructure, which includes a record level of funding for the Army Corps of Engineers' Civil Works program at $8.7 billion, an increase of $906 million over fiscal year 2021. Funding for the Corps will be … Continue Reading
08.02.21
SUMMARY: Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2022
Washington, D.C. - The fiscal year 2022 appropriations bill for the Department of Agriculture and Food and Drug Administration provides discretionary funding of $25.855 billion, which is an increase of $2.5 billion over fiscal year 2021 enacted levels. U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Chair of the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Subcommittee, said: "This bipartisan legislation is the product of Democrats and Republicans working together to… Continue Reading
07.29.21
Leahy Statement on the Bipartisan Senate Security Supplemental
I rise on the Senate Floor today to urge that the Senate take up and pass H.R. 3237, the Emergency Security Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021, with an amendment at the desk. The amendment is the result of bipartisan compromise between myself and Vice Chairman Shelby, and I want to thank him for his hard work and his friendship. This $2.1 billion dollar package is designed to address the aftermath of the violent insurrection that took place on January 6, heal the remaining scars of the C… Continue Reading
07.27.21
Leahy Announces Bipartisan Agreement On Security Supplemental
WASHINGTON (Tuesday, July 27, 2021) - Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Tuesday announced a $2.1 billion bipartisan agreement on an emergency security supplemental to address the fallout of the January 6 insurrection, the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan, and expenses incurred on the Capitol complex as a result of the COVID pandemic. Leahy said: "We have the responsibility to take care of the Capitol Police in the wake of their incredible service on J… Continue Reading
07.12.21
Leahy Introduces Emergency Security Supplemental
WASHINGTON (Monday, July 12, 2021) - Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Monday introduced a comprehensive emergency security supplemental to address the urgent security needs facing the Capitol and the country. The $3.7 billion bill would address the violent insurrection that took place on January 6, provide funding for costs incurred on the Capitol complex and the Department of Defense related to the COVID pandemic, and provide the resources to support our Afghan pa… Continue Reading
07.12.21
Chairman Leahy Statement on the Introduction of the Senate Security Supplemental
I rise on the Senate Floor yet again to urge that the Senate take up and pass an emergency supplemental to deal with the fallout from the violent insurrection that took place at the seat of our Democracy on January 6th. I have been making this call for two months now and am sad to say that I am beginning to feel like a broken record. Just days before this chamber left for the July 4th recess I sounded the alarm that time was running out. This remains true today. The Senate only has a few wee… Continue Reading
07.09.21
Statement of Senate Appropriations Chairman Leahy On The Security Supplemental
It is urgent that Congress pass a security supplemental to address the needs of the National Guard and the Capitol Police resulting from the fallout of the January 6 insurrection. As I have warned, if we do not act, Capitol Police projects they will deplete salaries funds sometime in August, and they already exceeded their projected overtime because of activities resulting from January 6th in late June. The National Guard will also be forced to cut training sometime in August as well. It has… Continue Reading
06.24.21
Chairman Leahy Statement On The Increasing Urgency Of Bipartisan Negotiations On The Security Supplemental Appropriations Bill
It was 169 days ago that the world witnessed a violent insurrection take place in the seat of American democracy. The memory of rioters in combat gear, armed with zip ties, smashing in the windows of the Capitol Building is seared into the American consciousness. The images of the National Guard patrolling the Capitol grounds behind fences topped with barbed wire will fill the pages of text books on American history for generations. We did not budget for an insurrection, and the path of dest… Continue Reading
06.21.21
Leahy Calls For Bipartisan Negotiations On Security Supplemental
WASHINGTON (Monday, June 21, 2021) - Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Monday called on Senate Republicans to join bipartisan negotiations on the Security Supplemental to address the fallout from the January 6 insurrection. It has been 166 days since the January 6 attack, and 32 days since the House passed an emergency supplemental. Without Senate action, the Capitol Police will run out of funding sometime in August. And without Senate action, the National Guard, w… Continue Reading
06.17.21
Statement of Chairman Leahy at the hearing to review of the FY22 Department of Defense Budget Request
Today, we welcome testimony from Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley in support of the President's budget request for the Department of Defense. The budget request totals $715 billion for the Department of Defense, which is a 1.6 percent increase over fiscal year 2021. The budget includes important investments to deter our adversaries; support for our military and civilian personnel and their families; funds to combat the ongoing pand… Continue Reading
06.15.21
Statement of Chairman Leahy On the GAO Decision on the Pause of Border Barrier Construction Obligations
Today's announcement by the GAO is a welcome one. As the ruling made clear, a review of the environmental havoc wrought by former President Trump's vanity wall, and taking the time to actually consult with the various stake holders, including landowners whose land was being seized, is legal and permitted by law. President Trump's approach to the wall at the Southern Border was at best a bumper sticker approach to a serious policy issue, and it should be reviewed to ensure that American taxpaye… Continue Reading
06.08.21
Opening Remarks of Chairman Leahy on the Appropriations Hearing on the FY 2022 State Department Budget Request
Welcome Secretary Blinken. I will begin by making my opening statement. I understand Vice Chairman Shelby will defer to Senator Graham, Ranking Member on the State, Foreign Operations Subcommittee for his opening statement. Then I will turn to Senator Coons, our new Chairman of the State, Foreign Operations Subcommittee, for his opening statement. Mr. Secretary, this Committee funds every aspect of the State Department's operations and programs. You cannot turn the lights on, or power your … Continue Reading
05.28.21
Statement of Chairman Leahy On The Introduction Of The Biden Budget
Today, President Biden introduced a bold vision for an American future, and I share his priorities to build back better. In the decade following the Budget Control Act, we lost ground in education, child care, environmental protections, infrastructure, and affordable housing. The Budget Control Act did not constrain our national debt; it left us a nation in disrepair. The investments outlined in the Biden budget reflect this reality. The Senate Appropriations Committee has already held sev… Continue Reading
05.27.21
Statement of Chairman Leahy on the Introduction of the Biden Budget and the End of the Budget Control Act
The Budget Control Act of 2011 expires this year, and that is a good thing. This law led to a decade of underfunding our domestic priorities, from which it will take years to recover. Right now, in communities across the country, our infrastructure is crumbling, millions of Americans cannot access federal programs for which they qualify, and we are falling behind in investing in science, research, and development on the global economic stage. All of this because the Budget Control Act set ar… Continue Reading
05.19.21
Statement of Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On the Shelby, Inhofe Amendment
Providing a dollar to the Defense department for every dollar of non-defense spending is simply arbitrary, and would lead to absurd results. Under this amendment, if we pass an infrastructure bill through reconciliation providing a $2 trillion dollars to fix our roads and bridges and build out broadband, we would then have to provide $2 trillion dollars for defense, nearly tripling that budget. I welcome a debate about the appropriate levels for defense and non-defense spending in Fiscal Year… Continue Reading
05.14.21
Statement of Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On The House Introduced Emergency Security Supplemental
There can be no question that the needs in the wake of the tragic events of January 6th are great. The insurrectionists left in their wake broken doors and broken windows, our Capitol Police force is overburdened and under resourced, and members and staff have suffered significant emotional trauma. It also exposed vulnerabilities in our security that must be addressed. On top of that the pandemic has caused the House and the Senate and their supporting agencies to incur unexpected costs to ke… Continue Reading
05.12.21
Appropriations Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy Holds Hearing On Domestic Violent Extremism In America
WASHINGTON (Wednesday, May 12, 2021) - Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Wednesday held a hearing of the full Committee to examine the increasing prevalence of domestic violent extremism in the United States. Viewed by many experts as the most persistent and lethal threat facing our country, attacks and plots by domestic violent extremists are on the rise. In 2020 alone, white nationalists and like-minded extremists conducted 66 percent of terrori… Continue Reading
05.12.21
Opening Statement of Chairman Patrick Leahy on Domestic Violent Extremism in America
The January 6th images of insurrectionists flying confederate flags as they stormed the U.S. Capitol are stark reminders that domestic violent extremism in America is hardly a new threat. Our nation's history has been marred by the violent, deadly acts of extremists pushing a range of hateful white supremacist ideologies. From the Ku Klux Klan to Timothy McVeigh, we have witnessed - and suffered through - extremists killing innocent people in the name of their morally bankrupt causes. The violen… Continue Reading
04.30.21
Chairman Leahy Statement On President Biden’s Announcement On Funds Stolen By The Trump Administration
For years, President Trump raided taxpayer dollars from our military and military families to build a wall he promised the American people Mexico would pay for. He let schools for military children deteriorate, and he stripped our National Guard of the resources and equipment they needed to effectively carry out their mission. This smash-and-grab funding of bumper sticker policies left a backlog of unfunded projects vital to our national security that will take years to restore. The construct… Continue Reading