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Latest Appropriations News
April 18, 2012
Press Release
While this bill isn't as bad as it would have been with a more proportional cut based on the Ryan allocation, it is not as high as it should be. In comparison, the Senate CJS Subcommittee approved an FY13 bill on Tuesday that is $731 million higher than the House allocation.
April 17, 2012
Press Release
Today House Republicans released their bill text for the FY13 Energy and Water Appropriations bill. While it is always encouraging to see the appropriations process get underway, I fear that the outlook for this year's bills may be ominous given the Republican's choice to renege on the Budget Control Act agreement and cut the FY13 allocation by -$19 billion.
April 16, 2012
Press Release
Cutting or eliminating HUD, which currently supports 3 million housing units across America, would do immeasurable harm to the families and seniors who rely on the department for access to safe, affordable housing and it would cripple the private companies that operate this housing.
Issues:
March 28, 2012
Press Release
Despite my appreciation for the innovative and streamlined project model used by ARPA-E, I have repeatedly shared my concerns regarding your program's potential overlap with other areas of DOE. Many of the activities pursued by ARPA-E are in areas where either DOE's applied programs or the Office of Science are also endeavoring to make progress. I believe that there is a place for competition within the Department, but in an era of scarce funding redundancies must be kept to a minimum.
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March 28, 2012
Press Release
Reclamation's budget request for Water and Related Resources represents a four percent reduction from that of 2012. And while we are all interested in finding appropriate places to cut, I have some concerns that this reduced request continues the disinvestment in the nation's water resource infrastructure. Therefore, it will be especially important that the Subcommittee understands the specific methodology used to arrive at the Bureau's particular set of projects and activities.
Issues:
March 27, 2012
Press Release
Gas prices are again rising, putting pressure on the wallet of every American. While there is no 'magic bullet' available to the government to immediately drop the price of gasoline, on-going federal research in vehicle technologies is starting to yield dividends with the market introduction of automobiles utilizing technologies that will displace some portion of gasoline for power.
Issues:
March 27, 2012
Press Release
Yours is not an easy job, and I know the budget situation in recent years has made it particularly hard. According to the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, 37 states across the nation provided less funding per student to local school districts in the 2011-2012 school year than they did the year before, and 30 states are providing less than they did in 2008 sometimes significantly less. So I want you to know I very much appreciate your hard work and commitment in these difficult times.
March 22, 2012
Press Release
As we think through the President's budget proposal for 2013, I think it is critical to remember the context in which it comes. This year's request arrives after two successive rounds of budget cutting. It comes as the House Majority is once again proposing a budget that asks the middle class to pay for more tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans, including by making significant cuts to investments in education.
March 22, 2012
Press Release
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is on the front lines of bringing trust back into the market. Every day it is working to assure that the futures and swaps market operates with integrity, and away from the darkness which it operated in for years. With the hundreds of trillions of dollars that make up the swaps market, I strongly believe that this is not an area we want to leave to chance. This is an area that needs to be watched. Recent history has taught us that. That means that we need to fund the CFTC at a level that allows this agency to do its critical work.
Issues:
March 21, 2012
Press Release
Worker health and safety is one of the most important elements in meeting the Department's mission. In particular, given the materials and facilities under EM's charge, the potential human and financial losses that can come from having an unsafe worksite are mindboggling. I appreciate that you take seriously your charge to ensure the safety of the Department's projects and look forward to discussing in detail your office's progress on this front.
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