Congress is in the thick of spending discussions before leaving D.C. for the July 4th break. Here are some of this week’s developments so far:
- The House Appropriations Committee approved its $280 billion military construction and veterans affairs spending bill Wednesday. “The bill specifically targets military housing and child care needs, women’s and mental health priorities, and the climate crisis, while responding to threats emanating from Russian and Chinese aggression,” Milcon/VA subcommittee chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) said in a press release.
- The committee’s defense subcommittee approved a $706 billion DOD spending bill Wednesday in a closed-door markup. Appropriators are catching heat from both sides about the funding level. “Democrats have landed on a responsible funding level for the Department of Defense that maintains a strong national security posture today, while making important investments in modernization that will make us even stronger in the years to come,” subcommittee chair Betty McCollum (D-Minn.) said in a press release. The full committee will consider the bill July 13.
- House Budget Committee Democrats are now unsure if the House will produce its own budget blueprint or wait to see what comes from the Senate, where Democrats are wrangling with how to structure the budget resolution to include other policy priorities of President Joe Biden and congressional Democrats, including infrastructure.
Navy photo by Boatswain’s Mate 1st Class Taylor Baxley
