In the News

Congressman Connolly issued the following statement in support of the bipartisan Omnibus Spending Bill:

Passage of the omnibus spending bill delivers on the Bipartisan Budget Agreement I supported in late October to avert both a government shutdown and a historic default on our nation’s credit. This latest compromise restores critical funding for our nation’s defense and domestic priorities in a balanced fashion. Perhaps most important, it spares Northern Virginia from the harmful cuts of sequestration, which have served as a drag on our region’s economy.

Residents and businesses across Northern Virginia stand to benefit significantly from this legislation, which will fund the federal government through Sept. 30, 2016. Of particular interest to our region, this omnibus bill will increase transportation investments by nearly $4 billion. I worked with the region’s congressional delegation to fend off attempts to cut the federal government’s $150 million contribution to Metro’s ongoing safety and capital improvements. We successfully restored the full funding. Reneging on that commitment would have caused a disastrous ripple effect across the region, jeopardizing the matching $150 million from Virginia, Maryland, and D.C. and threatening the progress needed to restore safety and confidence in Metro.

In addition, this bipartisan bill ensures federal employees and members of our nation’s military receive a 1.3% pay raise next year. Federal funding for industry research and innovation will grow considerably under the new budgets for the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes for Health, and the departments of defense and energy, among others. Additional support is being sent to our state and local partners for law enforcement and emergency responders. Our youngest and oldest residents will benefit from expanded nutrition and day-care assistance. The budget agreement also will increase investments in our students, both in k-12 and college classrooms, including a $140 increase in the maximum Pell Grant awards.

It preserves, and even expands, funding to protect the environment and promote affordable housing, which are priorities in our community. I also am glad that the omnibus bill includes important language for which I fought regarding compensation for former Iran hostages and their families, U.S. policy towards the forcible and illegal annexation of Crimea, and training for security personnel and diplomats at our foreign embassies. Just as important, the agreement does not include odious proposals to restrict the President’s immigration reforms, to impede efforts to reduce carbon emissions, to block a woman’s access to comprehensive health care, or to infringe on the rights of working Americans.

This bipartisan effort represents a considerable improvement over the alternative. The original House Republican budget proposal would have whittled domestic spending down to its lowest level in 50 years. This bill restores critical investments in our people, our communities, and our economy.