Ranking Member Cartwright Statement at the Fiscal Year 2024 Department of Justice Grantmaking Components Budget Request Hearing

2023-04-26 14:40
Statement

Congressman Matt Cartwright (D-PA), Ranking Member of the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Subcommittee, delivered the following remarks at the Subcommittee's hearing on the Fiscal Year 2024 Request Request for the Department of Justice Grantmaking Components:

Thank you, Chairman Rogers.

Mr. Clements, Ms. Randall, Ms. Johnson. We appreciate you being here today. Welcome to all of you. I look forward. I look forward to your testimony on the important grant programs you’re heading up.

The grantmaking components of DOJ provide valuable resources for states and local governments, as well as for non-profit organizations across our nation to carry out public safety projects and provide services that would otherwise not be possible. This is especially true for our state and local law enforcement agencies. The Byrne JAG program is the leading source of Federal justice funding to state, local, and Tribal jurisdictions.

For these last four years, this Subcommittee has made increasing investments in the grant programs of the Office of Justice Programs, Office on Violence Against Women and Community Oriented Policing Services, including providing for the emergency needs of state and local law enforcement agencies during the COVID pandemic.

When thinking of the progress made over these last few years, it concerns me that there are powerful and loud forces in the House majority are poised to drastically cut discretionary spending. That is something that would greatly harm the critical efforts funded by these programs that you all are involved with. Are we really interested in rolling back efforts that make our communities safer and protect the public from crime? To protect the public from evolving threats? Which public safety efforts should be scaled back--preventing gun violence, helping our veterans, supporting victims of crime, fighting the scourge of opioids in our communities? Which of these efforts can we signal to America that we no longer find them important for us to invest in?

The answer is: they’re all important.

Our job on this Committee is to provide the resources necessary to keep the United States of America strong, safe, and moving forward.

For fiscal year 2024, the Biden Administration has requested discretionary funding of $3.4 billion for the Office of Justice Programs, $651 million for COPS programs, and $1 billion for the Violence Against Women Act prevention and prosecution programs. Overall, it’s a request of $5 billion in discretionary funding for these programs, which is $733 million over the fiscal year 2023 enacted totals.

My concern is that proposals, by many in Congress, to slash budgets will greatly damage much of the progress we all have made to enhance public safety efforts and support those in need.

So I look forward to discussing further the impacts of potential cuts as well as other grant-related issues at this hearing. And again, thank you for being here and I look forward to your testimonies.

118th Congress