The House of Representatives voted 272-162, implying something in the way of bipartisanship, on Tuesday to advance a continuing resolution to extend current federal agency funding rates through March 11.
The current continuing resolution keeping the federal government open expires on Feb. 18.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer had indicated before the House vote that the Senate would take up the funding bill “quickly” after House passage, “in time before the Feb. 18 deadline.”
Read HR 6617’s full bill text here and a summary here.
Virginia House members on the record on HR 6617
Donald McEachin, D-VA-04
“It is imperative that the United States government remains open, functional, and working for the American people. I voted in support of the continuing resolution to ensure that is the case. This temporary extension will provide time to complete bipartisan, bicameral negotiations on fiscal year 2022 appropriations legislation. While this extension was necessary, we cannot continue to fund our government for small, incremental periods of time. It is past time House and Senate Republicans come to the negotiation table in good faith, so that we can finalize our long-term funding package for fiscal year 2022.”
Elaine Luria, D-VA-02
“My vote for the continuing resolution tonight was a vote to avoid a government shutdown, which would devastate Coastal Virginia’s economy and threaten our national security. We are nearly halfway through Fiscal Year 2022 and have yet to pass a spending bill that funds our national defense, gives a pay raise to our service members, and secures the long-term future of Hampton Roads. This is unacceptable.
“A year-long continuing resolution would cost the Department of Defense billions and prevent the Navy from quickly and adequately responding to threats and aggression around the world from adversaries like China. The Navy would lose $14 billion in purchasing power over the next year, severely impacting our ability to acquire ships and weapons.
“Though the continuing resolution is far from perfect, I worked with my colleagues and fought hard to ensure that funding for the Columbia-class submarine was included in the final package passed today. The Columbia-class is the Pentagon’s most important priority, and it’s crucial to maintaining our nuclear triad – the cornerstone of our national security. However, important priorities like Iron Dome and the entire Department of Defense budget were not addressed.
“Continuing to subvert the normal appropriations process threatens our ability to defend our nation, undermines the considerable economic progress we have made since the start of the pandemic, and disrupts major industries and employers in Coastal Virginia. Congress must act swiftly to pass a strong budget that prioritizes defense spending to counter the threats we face around the world and provide our government with the basic resources it needs to function.”
Rob Wittman, R-VA-01
“Doing something repeatedly that results in the same failures and expecting a different outcome is the definition of insanity. For far too long, Congress has used Continuing Resolutions as a complete abandonment of budgeting responsibly as Washington’s ‘budgeting by crisis’ mentality has steadily gotten worse. Rather than buckling down and getting spending bills done on time, Congress has yet again kicked the can down the road through a short-term solution to a long-term problem. This is no way to govern.
“Today’s passage of a Continuing Resolution is further proof that we live in an age of procrastination and irresponsible budgeting in Washington. It’s time for Members to stop preaching accountability without any substantive action or follow-through. This new normal of Members of Congress using a Continuing Resolution rather than doing the job they were elected to do is unacceptable. I remain committed to passing a permanent solution that will provide a path to fiscal certainty for our armed services, our federal employees and agencies, and the American economy.”
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