Congressman Rooney Statement on Passage of Consolidated Appropriations Act

Washington, DC – This afternoon, Congressman Francis Rooney voted for passage of H.R. 1625, the Consolidated Appropriations Act. While the bill is far from perfect, several key provisions have led to support for this legislation. Among these are:

• Funding at the full amount requested by the Army Corps of Engineers for Everglades restoration projects and Herbert Hoover Dike repairs.
• Rebuilding our military and providing the largest pay raise in eight years for the men and women serving our country.
• Funding $1.6 billion for a wall along our southern border.
• Securing $2 billion for veterans’ hospital maintenance and backlogged construction projects.
• Providing $4.7 billion in assistance to address the horrors of opioid addiction.
• Addressing school safety by passing the FIX NICS Act and designating $2 billion for school safety programs.
• Elimination of healthcare cost sharing reduction payments – which were an Obama era giveaway to insurance companies.

Congressman Rooney stated, “Legislation is often imperfect, and this bill is no exception. The unfortunate reality is that sixty votes are needed in the Senate to pass an appropriations plan and keep our government open. Overall, I believe that rebuilding our military, which is struggling to provide parts for airplanes and now has the smallest Navy since WWI, is critical to the security of our country, and that funding Everglades restoration and Herbert Hoover Dike repairs at the full amount requested by the Army Corps is critical to Southwest Florida.”