Ranking Member DeLauro Statement at the Subcommittee Markup of the 2026 Legislative Branch Funding Bill

Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03), Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Committee, delivered the following remarks at the subcommittee markup of the 2026 Legislative Branch funding bill:

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you Chairman Valadao, Ranking Member Espaillat, and the majority and minority staff for your work on this bill, especially Faye Cobb.

Since taking office, the Trump Administration has stolen funding, appropriated by our committee, passed by the House and the Senate, and signed into law by the President, for programs and services across the federal government. 

This bill’s drastic cuts and constraints on the Government Accountability Office and the Library of Congress will inhibit our ability to hold government accountable, and root out waste and fraud. 

The GAO’s nonpartisan audits, analyses, and investigations are an invaluable asset to the American people in ensuring their government is not running afoul of the law it creates and enforces. GAO is one of our most valuable tools to achieve better efficiency and effectiveness across the government. 

It is astonishing that, for all the talk about finding and rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse, House Republicans would defund the watchdog that is tasked with precisely that role. The only plausible explanation is that the majority – and the Administration to which it is exceedingly loyal – is upset that GAO has repeatedly found that the White House is stealing funds away from taxpayers.

We as appropriators, and as members of Congress, cannot tolerate this theft. They would defund the institution that alerts us to government malfeasance.

A few of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have enjoyed the privilege of the Administration’s attention, and with limited success have begged them to unfreeze funding for offices and agencies in their districts. But that is not how the Appropriations process should work. Funding your local Social Security office should not depend on the benevolence of the president – funding is determined by the U.S. Congress.

If the Appropriations Committee will not stand up and stand together and ensure that the resources we appropriate in law are disbursed so people get the help they need, when we are living in a cost-of-living crisis, then why are we here? What are we doing this for? 

How can we possibly move forward without shared agreement that what we do here is write laws? 

Additionally, House Republicans continue to show disrespect for the United State Capitol Police. Democrats and Republicans supported the creation of a plaque honoring the service and sacrifice of the law enforcement personnel who put their lives on the line to protect our democracy during the January 6 attack on the Capitol. This plaque was supposed to be in place by March 2023. It has been created—an image of it hangs outside my office. But House Republicans refuse to follow the law and hang it in the Capitol. Instead of using this bill to support the brave men and women who keep us safe, this bill is shamefully silent.

The majority has also once again included harmful policy riders that hurt our ability to attract and retain diverse and talented staff – and every one of us knows that it is our staff that keep our names on the door. The bill would create license to discriminate against LGBTQ+ people and block diversity programs, and I am frustrated that this bill continues to bar DACA recipients from Legislative Branch employment. 

This bill would make it more difficult for new moms to work in the Legislative Branch, with fewer protections than they would have working in any other job across the federal government. These policies make it harder for us to build a workforce as diverse and talented as the country we serve.

Before I close, there is another issue looming over this bill: security for Members of Congress. Two Minnesota lawmakers and their spouses were shot in their homes—and tragically, Melissa Hortman and her husband were killed. Political violence should have no place in the United States, but time and again we have seen horrific incidents targeting elected officials and their families.

This is not and should not be a partisan dispute, and it demands a nonpartisan response. As the former Chair of the committee, I know that Chairman Cole would have given the subcommittee its allocation and Chairman Valadao would have had to make most decisions about the content of the bill prior to the tragic attacks in Minnesota. While there are funds included in the bill to reimburse local law enforcement, we must do far more. We cannot sit silently by and wait for the next attack. Members of Congress must be secure. Our families should feel safe in their homes. 

Our staff has been in close contact with the Sergeant at Arms, Capitol Police, the Committee on House Administration, and leadership about options to improve our security. Each potential path includes costs that the subcommittee must cover. As those discussions continue and as we get additional information, the majority must pledge to increase resources in the bill for security improvements. The minority and majority need to come together on that issue.

Thank you, and I yield back.

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