Letter to the Hon. Nita M. Lowey, Chairwoman of the House Committee on Appropriations, the Hon. Kay Granger, Ranking member of the House Committee on Appropriations, the Hon. Richard C. Shelby, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, and the Hon. Patrick Leahy, Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations - Florida Members Call on Congress to Fully Fund Efforts to Defend Democracy in Venezuela

Letter

When the House of Representatives and the Senate meet to reconcile the differences between their versions of the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2020, we respectfully ask you to provide the highest level of funding feasible for Venezuela under the Economic Support Fund (ESF).

As you know, the House version of the bill (H.R. 2839), as approved by the Appropriations Committee, provided $17.5 million in ESF for Venezuela, the same as the Fiscal Year 2019 enacted level. During floor consideration of the bill, an amendment was offered to increase that funding by $3 million, to $20.5 million, and that amendment was approved. See Amendment #101 to H.R. 2740 (Reps. Murphy, Shalala, and Soto). The Senate version of the bill (S. 2583) would provide $30 million in ESF for Venezuela. We hope both chambers will agree to a final bill that provide the highest level of funding possible for this critically-important cause.

The situation in Venezuela is a political, economic, and humanitarian crisis, and the regime of Nicolas Maduro is responsible. The citizens of Venezuela are suffering, and millions have migrated to other countries, including many to our congressional districts. ESF for Venezuela will sustain and strengthen USAID and State Department programs to empower the people of Venezuela--defending human rights, strengthening civil society, improving governance, supporting independent media, and promoting fair and transparent elections.

We thank you for your consideration of this request.

Source