The House Appropriations Committee today released its reports accompanying the fiscal year 2023 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies and Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies appropriations bills.
The reports will be considered at tomorrow’s full Committee markup.
The Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies funding bill, which was advanced by a voice vote in Subcommittee on Wednesday, June 15:
- Rebuilds our public health infrastructure and strengthens the safety of our baby formula market with increased funding to address maternal and infant nutrition, including resources for the ‘Closer to Zero’ initiative to reduce exposure to toxic elements in babies’ and young children’s food, emerging food-related chemical and toxicological issues, drug safety oversight, as well as providing additional resources for in-person inspections of one of the largest foreign drug manufacturing countries, and drug and device supply chain monitoring and surveillance. The bill also invests in our public health infrastructure by modernizing FDA’s data infrastructure to better ensure the safety and security of the food and medical supply chain.
- Tackles hunger and nutrition insecurity by providing increased access to fruits and vegetables to 6.2 million people through WIC and ensuring 43.5 million people in SNAP-eligible families get the benefits they need. The bill also invests in the health of America’s kids through Child Nutrition programs, like school meals, which are now the healthiest source of food consumed in the United States.
- Grows opportunity and lifts up rural communities with a critical increase for rural broadband, a new 1 percent loan program for water programs for rural areas, and a record investment of $1.5 billion in single family home loans.
- Provides important investments to ensure equitable participation in USDA programs. In total, the bill provides increases for extension, research, and capacity grants at our 1890 land grants, 1994 land grants, and Hispanic serving institutions to help strengthen the pipeline for the future of agriculture. It also provides increased funding to improve outreach and program access to historically underserved communities and more than doubles funding for Tribal relations activities.
- Provides full pay and FERS costs for both USDA and FDA. For FDA, this is the first time in years such costs have been provided. Including these costs ensures that these expenses do not come out of base program funding.
The Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies funding bill, which was advanced by a voice vote in Subcommittee on Wednesday, June 15:
- Supports our veterans with investments in health care, including targeted investments that advance women's health, mental health, and homelessness assistance
- Rebuilds our infrastructure with strong investments to construct critical facilities on military installations, including family housing and childcare centers, and build, repair, and retrofit Veterans Affairs facilities
- Protects our national security with investments to respond to the challenges posed by Russian and Chinese aggression
- Confronts the climate crisis with increased climate change and resiliency funding to help military installations adapt to rising sea levels and worsening natural disasters
Tomorrow’s full Committee markup begins at 10 AM. It will be webcast live and linked from the House Committee on Appropriations website.
Original source can be found here.
