Issue Position: Federal Funding

Issue Position

Securing our fair share of federal funding for the state of Hawai"i is essential to creating good jobs, maintaining our infrastructure, and providing vital public services including affordable health care and access to early childhood education.

In the U.S. Senate, Senator Schatz has worked hard to deliver for Hawai"i. He is the only Senator from the class of 2012 honored with two subcommittee chairmanships, of the Tourism, Competitiveness, and Innovation Subcommittee and the Subcommittee on Water and Power. By leveraging these responsibilities, and his personal relationships with Democratic leaders like Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Senator Schatz is ensuring that Hawai"i's interests are well represented in Washington.

Senator Schatz worked to make sure that the most recent federal budget included more than $1 billion for defense programs benefiting Hawai"i and more than $450 million for road and transit grants and funding benefitting Hawai"i. He also fought to increase funding for the East-West Center to $16.7 million, far above than the President's original budget, and to protect funds for Native Hawaiian health, education, and housing programs, as well as other Hawai"i priorities that the U.S. House of Representatives had tried to cut.

As Lieutenant Governor, Senator Schatz also led efforts to create jobs by securing federal grants for Hawai"i that brought over $130 million in federal funds to the state, including $13 million for small businesses and $90 million for local military projects that included renovations for Hawai"i's National Guard Armory.

Given the importance of tourism to Hawai"i's economy, Senator Schatz introduced a bill to increase tourism in Hawai"i by expanding our National Parks System. Hawai"i is currently the home of seven national parks, which were responsible for over $314 million in revenue for the state in 2012; this new legislation will encourage the development of three additional national parks in Hawai"i -- one each on Hawaii Island, Maui, and Kauai.

He has worked with senior Senators to keep programs that benefit Hawai"i, including important renewable energy programs under the Department of Defense. Funding for these programs has been maintained even during the dangerous and wrongheaded cuts from sequestration, allowing Hawai"i companies to continue to conduct important research.

Senator Schatz is committed to making sure Hawai"i gets our fair share of federal funding, and will continue to fight for our local economy in the Senate.

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