[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 198 (Tuesday, December 20, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Page S7819]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                OMNIBUS

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I am pleased to announce that late last 
night, I introduced the bipartisan, bicameral, fiscal year 2023 omnibus 
appropriations bill. This bill invests $772.5 billion in nondefense 
discretionary programs, including $118.7 billion--a 22-percent 
increase--for VA medical care, and $858 billion in defense funding. It 
provides $44.9 billion in emergency assistance to Ukraine and our NATO 
allies and $40.6 billion in emergency funding to assist communities 
across the country recovering from drought, hurricanes, flooding, 
wildfire, natural disasters, and other matters.
  The pain of inflation is real, and it is being felt across the 
Federal Government and by American families right now. Our bill offers 
relief, certainty for the operations of the Federal Government through 
the fiscal year, and the resources necessary to secure the national 
defense. From funding for nutrition programs and housing assistance, to 
home energy costs and college affordability, this is a strong bill that 
directly invests in the American people. It is the product of 
bipartisan negotiations in line with the framework announced by Vice 
Chairman Shelby, Chair DeLauro, and myself last week, and I strongly 
urge my colleagues to support it.
  It fulfills the promise of bipartisan, landmark legislation that we 
passed this year, and it fulfills our promise to the American people.
  If you voted for the PACT Act to care for our veterans, you should 
vote for this bill. If you voted for the CHIPS Act, you should vote for 
this bill. If you voted for the infrastructure law, you should vote for 
this bill. If you want to help families deal with the cost of heating, 
childcare, college, and housing, you should vote for this bill. If you 
actually want to fund the troops and their families at the levels of 
the NDAA, you should vote for this bill. If you want to help the 
victims of domestic violence, you should vote for this bill. If you 
want to support law enforcement, you should vote for this bill.
  I will have more to say about our bill tomorrow, but our choice is 
clear. The alternative, a continuing resolution into the New Year, is 
short-sighted and wholly unnecessary. It imperils our national 
security, and it ignores the real pain and consequences of inflation. 
Without a clear path forward based on a bipartisan framework, punting 
on our responsibility to fund the Federal Government risks a full-year 
continuing resolution. Under a continuing resolution, America gets left 
behind. This is unacceptable.
  We have a bipartisan bill. We have a path forward now. I look forward 
to continuing to work with my friend, Vice Chairman Shelby, to pass 
this bill out of the Senate as soon as possible.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the joint explanatory 
statement accompanying the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 be 
printed in the Congressional Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

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