Cramer: Budget Deal Returns Congress to Regular Order

Press Release

Today, the House of Representatives joined the US Senate in returning regular order to the appropriations process in Congress with passage of legislation which outlines broad spending priorities and budget caps for the next two years. In addition, it provides funding to keep the government operating until March 23, 2018 in order to give members of both Chambers time to draft legislation to fund the government through the 2018 Fiscal Year.

"While I do not agree with every item in this bill, it ensures we meet our highest priorities of rebuilding our military and providing them with the tools, training, and resources to keep our nation secure; making a significant down payment on the backlog of infrastructure needs of our country; tackling the scourge of opioid abuse ravaging areas of our nation; providing disaster relief to many areas of our country still struggling to recover; and ensuring the resources are available to pass the next Farm Bill," said Cramer. "This bill removes the constant threat of a government shutdown and returns Congress to a path of fiscal reality where the regular order process will be allowed to operate and I look forward to working with my colleagues on drafting legislation which meets the needs of North Dakota and our nation."

The bill also includes language expanding a tax credit for carbon capture and sequestration and enhanced oil recovery. Congressman Cramer has been a long-time supporter of this effort and has co-sponsored separate legislation to incentivize carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) projects. This is a technology which can capture up to 90 percent of the carbon dioxide emissions produced from the use of traditional fuel methods in electricity generation and industrial processes.

"With our coal, oil, and gas industries in North Dakota, we're in a perfect spot to develop these technologies to increase energy production, jobs, and security," said Cramer. "The opportunity to lead the way in these new technologies is something North Dakota is very excited about."

The legislation also includes funding for health care and Medicare programs long supported by Congressman Cramer. It extends funding for community health centers as well as continuing to fund the Special Diabetes Program for Type 1 Diabetes and the Special Diabetes Program for Native Americans for two years. Each of these diabetes programs will receive $150 million a year.

Nearly $100 billion of the increase in spending will be paid for with budget offsets. This represents nearly 100% of the budget increases in non-discretionary spending.

Summary of Spending Agreement

Rebuilds our Military: This agreement delivers on our promise to fully fund the military at the levels in this year's National Defense Authorization Act. This is the funding level that Defense Secretary James Mattis has said is needed to rebuild our military. The threats of the 21st century are grave and evolving, and yet our military's needs have been neglected and our readiness has deteriorated. Funding for the military was not a priority under the Obama administration, and the effect on readiness has been staggering. So much so that Secretary Mattis said he was "shocked" by the poor state of U.S. combat readiness. In 2017, we lost 80 service member lives due to accidents and training incidents--nearly four times as many lives killed in combat. With better training and equipment, these deaths may have been preventable. This legislation brings our military into the 21st century and will save lives. Our service members sacrifice so much for this country--the least we can do is keep them prepared and as safe as possible. This bill meets our commitment the United States Armed Forces.

Provides Long-Delayed Disaster Relief Resources: Last fall, our nation experienced historic, severe natural disasters that destroyed homes and crippled entire communities. This includes the hurricanes that devastated Puerto Rico, Florida, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Texas, and the wildfires that ravaged California. The House already passed legislation providing needed resources for recovery, but it has been stuck in the Senate. This budget agreement finally advances disaster recovery and provides these states and territories with emergency appropriations so victims can rebuild.

Breaks Parity, with a Bigger Increase for Defense than Non-Defense Spending: For eight years under President Obama, Democrats insisted that an increase in defense spending be tied to an equal increase in non-defense spending. That means that every time we wanted to provide more funding for our military, we had to spend equally in domestic discretionary spending. This arbitrary standard contributed to our military readiness crisis. This budget agreement breaks that parity construct, with significantly less spending for non-defense purposes than for our military.

Directs Domestic Spending Toward Limited Government Priorities: This bipartisan agreement includes providing a down payment on infrastructure; directing spending toward the fight against opioids; continuing our efforts to find cures by increasing funding for disease research at the National Institute of Health; and breaking down the backlog at the Veterans Administration. The budget agreement also includes important health care priorities, such as providing resources for community health centers, which are particularly important source of support for women in crisis.

Includes Meaningful Budget Offsets and Repeals Parts of Obamacare: As we provide critical resources for our military, the agreement also includes reductions in spending that Republicans have long sought, including structural reform to Medicare and big cuts to Obamacare. Among other offsets, the agreement cuts spending from an Obamacare slush fund called the Prevention and Public Health Fund. In addition, the bill repeals the infamous Independent Payment Advisory Board from Obamacare, better known as IPAB. Importantly, the bill also address Medicare, by further means-testing premiums in Medicare Parts B and D for high-income seniors. This is the kind of common-sense structural reform that advances our long-held principles to save and strengthen Medicare for the long haul.

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