McMorris Rodgers: House Votes to Restore Certainty for Eastern Washington

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-05) released the following statement following House passage of the FY 2014 Omnibus Appropriations bill, which provides $1.012 trillion in base discretionary spending, consistent with the Bipartisan Budget Agreement.

“Today the House voted to keep the government open for the next fiscal year to give hardworking people in Eastern Washington the certainty they need to create jobs and grow our economy. We prioritize important programs while cutting wasteful spending. In fact, this bill cuts total discretionary spending for the fourth year in a row, which hasn't happened since the Korean War,” said McMorris Rodgers.

The FY 2014 Omnibus Appropriations bill provides critical funding formany of Eastern Washington’s most important priorities. It provides funding for agriculture research programs, including the Agricultural Research Service and Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service;makes smart choices to strengthen national security and military readiness, and  provides necessary funding to Fairchild Air Force Base to support America’s troops and military families. This bill also amends the Bipartisan Budget Agreement to ensure that medically retired armed forces personnel and their survivor benefit plan recipients receive their full pension.

Halting new funding for Obamacare, the FY 2014 Omnibus Appropriations bill targets investments to disease prevention and medical research. The bill also provides funding to address the needs of our Eastern Washington veterans including funds to help the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) create a seamless electronic health record system with the Department of Defense, funding to help the VA meet its goal of ending the disability backlog claim by 2015, and $250 million for VA rural health initiatives. This legislation also provides funding for national infrastructure investments.

“While I continue to fight for a smaller, more efficient government, I am proud of the progress made in this bill that will put our nation on a more fiscally sustainable path and will continue to push for reforms that will bring the federal government to a balanced budget.”

###