Ranking Member DeLauro Statement to House Rules Committee in Support of Commerce, Justice, Science; Energy and Water Development; Interior and Environment Appropriations Package
WASHINGTON — House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03) delivered the following remarks at the House Rules Committee in support of the fiscal year 2026 spending package covering the Commerce, Justice, Science; Energy and Water Development; and Interior and Environment funding bills:
Good evening Chairwoman Foxx, Ranking Member McGovern, Members of the Committee. I wish you all a Happy New Year and thank you for the opportunity to testify today.
I am glad to be here alongside my counterpart on the Appropriations Committee, Chairman Cole, whose partnership I deeply appreciate.
I am proud to support the funding package before us today, which was largely negotiated by three extraordinary subcommittee ranking members: Congresswomen Marcy Kaptur, Chellie Pingree, and Grace Meng. They, along with their Republican counterparts, and Committee staff who I regard as the best and the brightest, who worked tirelessly throughout the holidays, and were able to forge a comprehensive, bipartisan, bicameral agreement.
I know there are some, among the press and elsewhere, who were skeptical that this agreement could be made, and would have the support to pass. I am confident that after this week they will reconsider that skepticism. And after this month, will abandon it entirely.
We set out three goals when we began this process. We sought to protect funding for Democratic priorities, reject any poison pill provisions, and reassert Congress’s power of the purse. I am proud to report that this package accomplishes all three of these goals.
As my colleague pointed out, we do provide funding for community projects and Congressionally directed spending and that’s for both Republican members and Democratic members.
This bill makes meaningful investments to bring down energy costs and rising utility bills, which are central drivers of the affordability crisis.
It increases funding for electrical grid infrastructure by $375 million, and adds over $3 million for the Weatherization Assistance Program, which helps low-income households improve the energy efficiency of their homes, saving participants $372 per year on average – at a time when families are being squeezed for every penny they have, these savings matter more than ever.
Despite the Trump Administration’s crusade against clean energy, this bill provides more than $3 billion for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy programs, rejecting the White House’s attempts to cut this funding by over $2 billion.
As the climate crisis increases the frequency and force of severe storms, this bill increases funding for the Army Corps of Engineers by nearly $2 billion, supporting projects that strengthen our water infrastructure, improve climate resilience, and protect our communities from natural disasters.
The bill also increases funding for Violence Against Women Act grants by $7 million, providing crucial resources for victims of abuse who otherwise would have nowhere to turn.
It protects our nation’s national parks and public lands, denying attempts to expand oil and gas leasing and weaken protections for endangered species. It provides nearly $9 billion for the EPA, almost doubling the funding for environmental protection that the White House sought in this bill.
Another highlight is protecting scientists whose livelihoods, and cutting-edge research, have been threatened by an administration that wants to limit funding to cover the indirect costs of research – shifting the financial burden onto individual scientists for work that benefits the public as a whole.
This is something Chairman Cole and I worked on years ago for the NIH, and I am proud that we are extending those protections to the National Science Foundation and Department of Energy.
I understand there may be some of my Democratic colleagues who are apprehensive about providing any funding for this administration – and administration that has abused its authority time and time again, while thumbing its nose at Congress and the rule of law. I understand your concern.
But abandoning the regular order appropriations process does nothing to rein in this administration. All it does is forfeit our ability to fight for the priorities that are important to us, to our constituents, and to the American people.
If we choose to abandon appropriations, we empower the president and the Office of Management and Budget, and abdicate Congress’s power of the purse, leaving us with only two alternatives: A permanent government shutdown, or endless stop-gaps with funding on autopilot. Those are both bad options.
Stop-gap measures, while useful in certain, limited circumstances, should never be our first choice. And if we come to rely on them as the default option – as I fear we have – eventually we concede our authority over federal spending.
When we pass full year spending bills through regular order we prescribe legally binding funding levels for specific programs with far more precision than under a continuing resolution. This diminishes the White House’s discretion over spending, and restricts their ability to deploy the federal budget as a partisan weapon.
I am under no illusions about this administration. I see what you see and I hear what you hear. But walking away from the process is not putting up a fight, it is admitting surrender.
Do I believe this bill is absolutely perfect? No. Of course not. There are plenty of things left out that I wish were included, and vice versa, and I am sure Chairman Cole feels the same. In fact, in both of our press releases, we highlighted the fact that the package does not include any poison pills. We may disagree on what constitutes a poison pill, but to come to an agreement both sides dropped what the other thought were objectionable policies.
I am proud of this package, though it is only the first step. However, ongoing conversations over the remaining six bills have been productive, and negotiations are progressing at a pace that is very encouraging. As of this evening, I am confident we will be able to complete our work and avoid any kind of continuing resolution prior to the January 30th deadline. That is a testament to the ability of our Ranking Members, the Committee staff, and of course, Chairman Cole and our counterparts in the Majority.
This bill is a reasonable compromise. I will vote for it, and I will be proud to do so. Thank you.
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