Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2019
Floor Speech
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 28, I call up the bill (H.R. 265) making appropriations for Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies programs for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2019, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, today marks the 20th day of the partial government shutdown. Each day pushes many of our government's vital services to the breaking point, further jeopardizing the 800,000 Federal employees who are furloughed and the countless other Americans feeling the shutdown's impact.
The Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act is a critically important piece of legislation for our Nation. From the food we eat to the medications we depend on, this bill touches the lives of every American.
It must be passed now, and the furloughed employees at these vital Federal agencies, our farmers, our agribusinesses, and the other Americans who are depending on their livelihoods must be brought back to work.
Because of the shutdown, USDA has stopped making loans and grants for rural development programs such as housing, water and wastewater facilities, and community facilities. New grants to our universities for agriculture research can't be made.
Across the Nation, Farm Service Agency county offices have been closed since December 28. Farmers applying for relief from retaliatory tariffs are in limbo, waiting for the shutdown to end. Nearly 33,000 USDA employees who are funded by this bill are currently furloughed.
At the Food and Drug Administration, more than 10,000 employees are working without pay, while another 7,000 have been furloughed, which is impacting everything from user fee collections to the reduction of food safety inspections, jeopardizing the food we eat. According to USDA, nearly 9,000 people are working without pay to inspect our meat, poultry, and egg products.
This bill would fund the Food Safety and Inspection Service at over $1 billion and restore our safety.
I will be the first person to admit that this bill is not perfect, but no bill ever is. However, this is about opening the government and putting it back to work for the American people.
This bill has passed the Senate by a vote of 92-6. There is no reason why we should not pass this bill since it has already been adopted by the leadership of the Senate and the Members of the Senate overwhelmingly, so that we can put American workers back on the job.
Specifically, this legislation provides over $23 billion in discretionary funding for USDA and FDA. That is $225 million above the 2018 enacted level.
It provides $2.73 billion for agriculture research conducted by the Agricultural Research Service and NIFA, an increase of $114 million from fiscal year 2018. These increases will help to ensure American agriculture remains competitive with other nations.
The Farm Service Agency, whose county offices were shuttered on December 28, is funded at $1.6 billion. In my district, all the county offices are now closed. These offices are the primary line of communication for our farmers and our ranchers, providing critical data, processing loans, and answering questions. Without this assistance and information, they are left in the dark when it comes to planning for next year's harvest.
Peanut sellers and cotton growers, who suffered from Hurricane Michael recently, are at a loss. They have product that is stored in warehouses that they need to sell in order to get income, but they can't get those sales accomplished without an okay from the Farm Service Agency. Those offices are closed. Nobody is there.
This legislation also makes significant investments in rural development by providing $3.8 billion. It takes a balanced approach with investments in water and wastewater facilities, broadband, housing, and rural businesses.
Again, right now, as a result of the shutdown, loans and grants that help small towns and rural communities all across the country are not being made.
This legislation rejects the President's proposed elimination of the Food for Peace program and instead funds it at $1.716 billion, which is $216 million above the House bill. The McGovern-Dole program, which was also proposed for elimination by the President, is funded at $210 million, slightly above the House level. I might note that the House funded both of these, contrary to the President's wishes.
Finally, this legislation funds the Food and Drug Administration at $2.97 billion, which is $159 million above the fiscal year 2018 enacted level, a 6 percent increase.
I would also like to point out that this bill does better than the House in addressing the opioid crisis that is hitting every single district in the country.
It also provides more funding for food safety than the House bill.
After nearly 3 weeks of uncertainty, it looks like the nearly 40 million people who are receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits will be able to keep their benefits at least through February. However, the funds for SNAP beneficiaries, for a single mother or a small shopkeeper, will run dry in March.
This bill, which provides $73.2 billion in mandatory funding for SNAP, will end any doubt about this, and it will give these recipients the peace of mind that they deserve.
Through a diverse urban-rural coalition, this legislation includes our farmer safety net, our food and nutrition programs.
Families, farmers, ranchers, and producers go to work every morning; so should their government.
Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Lowey), who is the first female chair of the United States House Committee on Appropriations.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I am delighted to yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro), a member of the Committee on Appropriations and chair of the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies, and is the former chair of the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Subcommittee of Appropriations.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Let me just say that, as we said before, this bill is not perfect, but we should not let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Chief among the funding in this bill is funding that is included to combat one of the biggest public health risks today which is opioids. The bill provides strong support for the FDA to combat this opioid epidemic.
In addition to funds provided last year, it provides $59 million to continue the activities involved in inspecting, investigating, and screening of opioids. As the agency that oversees these drugs, the FDA has a vital responsibility, I agree, to make sure that the public health impacts of opioid abuse is mitigated, but this funding is just one part of a broad strategy to address opioids.
The committee strongly supports the FDA's role in intergovernmental efforts to confront the crisis, but since we must move forward and open the government, we urge adoption of this bill.
Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee), a member of the Committee on Appropriations, co-chair of the House Democratic Steering and Policy Committee, and a long-time advocate for the elimination of persistent poverty in America and across the world.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
It has been said many times that we shouldn't pass this bill which has previously been adopted by the Senate because the President will not sign it.
Well, I believe that we have three branches of government, and it is our obligation as the legislative branch to pass the laws. If we do our job, then we will let the President be held responsible for his failure to do his. We must keep this government open for the American people.
Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Maine (Ms. Pingree), a member of the Committee on Appropriations and a member of the Subcommittee for Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, at this point I would just like to say that it is unconscionable that we will hold the American people hostage in denying them the services and the protections of their government, the much- needed paychecks for the workers employed by these agencies, simply to satisfy the ego of someone at the end of Pennsylvania Avenue.
Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone), who is the chairman of the authorizing Committee on Energy and Commerce.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume to just say that the gentleman from Washington makes some salient points. I agree with the gentleman that the Freedom of Information Act and the SNAP retail sales language is something that we would love to have and should be in this legislation.
Also, I look forward to working with the gentleman to take care of that as we move forward in the 116th Congress, as well as our work on the H-2A program, which is in bad need of repair. And persistent poverty, the 10-20-30 program, we are happy that the gentleman is supportive and that the committee has been supportive. We look forward to making sure that that is implemented fully as we move forward.
But, right now, we have to open the government. We cannot afford to let this government remain closed to continue to hurt the American people.
Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Scott), who is my classmate and the chair of the Committee on Education and Labor.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Costa), who is a member of the authorizing House Committee on Agriculture. He represents an area in California that is called the salad bowl of our country.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield the gentleman from California an additional 20 seconds.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, may I inquire how much time remains.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Kildee), who is a member of the House Committee on Ways and Means and who is also the chief deputy whip.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Wasserman Schultz), the chair-designate of Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. He is a member of the House Committee on Agriculture and Committee on Ways and Means. He also represents the salad bowl of this country.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I reserve a point of order on the gentleman's motion.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I withdraw my reservation of a point of order.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the motion to recommit.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, as many know, I have been and will continue to be an advocate and a supporter of rural broadband expansion. I view it as an obligation to provide adequate service for everyone, as it is vital to health, safety, the economy, and the welfare of all of our rural communities.
The $425 million that is provided in this bill will complement the $600 million that was provided in the FY 2018 bill, which has not yet been spent.
USDA recently completed the program design, and it can now begin implementing and, if this bill is enacted, awarding over $1 billion in broadband expansion funding to the communities that need it the most.
This funding is in addition to the other programs that assist communities in getting broadband services, including the Community Connect Program, the Broadband Loan Program, and the Distance Learning and Telecommunication Program.
We have funding in the works to accomplish the needs for rural broadband. We need to pass this bill because we need to open the government. We need to make sure that USDA and the Food and Drug Administration and all of the agencies that are shut down will open, and open quickly, to support the needs of the American people.
Mr. Speaker, I urge that this motion to recommit be rejected, and I yield back the balance of my time.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Source