Sen. Coons secures funding to support Delaware law
enforcement, Amtrak, the Delaware River and the Chesapeake Bay, research grants
for Delaware universities, the manufacturing institute based in Newark, and
more.
Congress and the White House must approve spending
bills by November 21 to avoid a government shutdown.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Chris Coons
(D-Del.), the first Delaware Senator in more than 40 years to serve on the
powerful Appropriations Committee, secured funding for key Delaware
priorities in the first package of Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 spending
bills to pass the Senate. Congress and the White House must approve a
spending package by November 21 to avoid a government shutdown.
The bipartisan package, which passed on a 84-9 vote, includes
funding for Amtrak, housing and economic development programs like the HOME
Investment Partnerships Program and Community Development Block Grants that
communities in Delaware rely on, investments in the preservation of the
Delaware River and the Chesapeake Bay, programs that support Delaware law
enforcement, research grants for Delaware universities, and the premier
national biopharmaceutical manufacturing institute based in Newark.
“Delawareans deserve a government that’s able to
fulfill its most basic responsibilities, and that starts with keeping the
government open and supporting the programs that make a difference in our
communities,” said Senator Coons. “These bipartisan
spending bills will provide more bulletproof vests for police officers in
Delaware, expand initiatives to combat drug addiction, preserve clean air and
water in our state, and much more. There’s more work to do in the weeks
ahead to ensure our government stays open and all of our key agencies and
programs remain funded, but this is an important start.”
The bipartisan
package passed today includes provisions that will benefit
Delaware:
The Commerce,
Justice, Science, and Related Agencies bill provides
critical funding for law enforcement, economic development, advanced
manufacturing, scientific research, cybersecurity, the 2020 Census, and more.
- Law
Enforcement. The bill includes a $16.5 million increase in funding
for the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Hiring program, which
will place approximately 1,300 more police officers on streets in Delaware
and across the country. The legislation includes a $5 million
increase to the Department of Justice (DOJ) Bulletproof Vest Partnerships
Program, which saved the lives of two police officers in Delaware in
2013. DOJ has calculated that the lives of more than 3,000 officers
over the last two decades have likewise been saved by this
program. The bill also provides a total of $208.3 million in DOJ
grant programs to address gun violence and keep Delaware communities safe,
including funding to improve the quality of criminal and mental health
records so interstate background checks are more effective and funding to
improve officer safety though POLICE Act grants and VALOR grants.
- Combatting
Gun Violence. This spending bill provides a total of
nearly $1.3 billion to fight gun violence and help keep our schools and
neighborhoods safe. This includes $131 million to the FBI, an increase of
$24.9 million above FY 2019, to run instant background checks so legal
buyers can exercise their Second Amendment rights while keeping guns away
from known criminals. It also provides the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,
Firearms and Explosives (ATF) a total of $913 million, an increase of
$21.3 million more than the FY 2019 level to enforce gun laws, trace
firearms connected to crime scenes, and keep illegal guns away from
traffickers and criminals.
- Economic
Development. The bill provides an increase of over $40 million for
the Commerce Department’s Economic Development Administration
(EDA). EDA awards infrastructure and planning grants to all 50
states. The $319.5 million provided for EDA will support over 20,000
American jobs and leverage an additional $4.5 billion in
investment. The bill also includes language secured by Senator Coons
to encourage EDA to establish a STEM Apprenticeship program to develop our
country’s workforce.
- Addressing
Addiction and Substance Abuse. The bill provides Delaware
communities, including first responders, $505 million in grant program
funding to fight substance abuse, including opioids. This includes
$378 million for Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act and $12 million
for anti-methamphetamine task force program.
- Preventing
Violence Against Women and Children. The bill provides $500
million, the highest funding level ever, for grants provided by the Office
on Violence Against Women. It also provides a $5 million increase in
funding to implement the Victims of Child Abuse Act.
- Manufacturing. The
bill provides for the growth of the Manufacturing USA program, including
funding for competitive grants to seed new future institutes, which are
critical to keep the United States competitive in advanced manufacturing. The
legislation also provides funding for NIIMBL, the nation’s premier biopharmaceutical
manufacturing institute based in Newark, DE. The bill rejected the
President’s attempts to defund the Manufacturing Extension Partnership
program, and has increased its funding so it can carry out its important
mission and further support small manufacturers with new cybersecurity and
digitalization challenges. For every one dollar of federal
investment, MEP generates over $27 in new sales growth for
manufacturers.
- Census. The
bill provides $7.6 billion for the Census Bureau, an increase of $3.7
billion above the FY 2019 enacted amount and $1.4 billion above the
President’s proposal. The bill included Senator Coons’ amendment that
will put pressure on the Census Bureau to step up its outreach and
engagement with hard-to-count communities, often disenfranchised minority
communities, for the 2020 Census.
- Science and
Research. The bill rejects the administration’s request to cut
funding for climate, weather, and oceans research at the National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) by 41 percent. Additionally,
the bill provides strong funding for the National Science Foundation (NSF),
including the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research
(EPSCoR), which bolsters investment in groundbreaking research in Delaware
and across the country. The bill also includes other priorities of universities
across Delaware, including the NOAA Sea Grant program, NASA Space Grant
program, and strong funding for NASA heliophysics research and Wide Field
Infrared Survey Telescope development.
- Conservation. The
bill funds several NOAA programs that help Delaware promote coastal
security and climate resilience, including Coastal Zone Management Grants,
the National Oceans and Coastal Security Fund, and the National Estuarine
Research Reserve System. The bill also directs the DOJ to provide
dedicated resources for investigating and prosecuting wildlife trafficking
and calls for funding for an important horseshoe crab trawl survey.
- Safe
Navigation. The bill provides $7.5 million for the NOAA Physical
Oceanographic Real Time Systems (PORTS) program, an increase above the FY
2019 enacted amount. This program supports real-time data that helps vessels
safely navigate the Delaware River.
The Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies bill provides
key funding for the Department of the Interior, the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), and other agencies to protect Delaware’s air and water, help
preserve land and wildlife habitat, and support cultural and recreational
opportunities.
- Delaware River Basin Restoration Program. The bill
includes $6.5 million for the Delaware River Basin Restoration Program. The
basin is home to more than 8 million people in five states and provides clean
drinking water for more than 15 million people. This funding is vitally
important for ensuring the health of the Delaware River watershed and the
agriculture, recreation, and other economic benefits that come from it.
- Chesapeake Bay. The bill
includes $76 million for the EPA Chesapeake Bay Program and $3 million for the
National Park Service Chesapeake Bay Gateways and Watertrails Network. These
programs help protect water quality in the Chesapeake Bay and provide
recreational opportunities throughout the region.
- Conservation. The bill includes $29.8 million for
the National Estuary Program, which will help support Delaware’s two national
estuaries – the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary and the Delaware Center
for the Inland Bays. The bill also provides funding for key conservation
programs, such as the North American Wetlands Conservation Act and the Land and
Water Conservation Fund, both programs that help protect open space and
wildlife habitat in Delaware.
- Protecting Drinking Water. The bill
continues steady funding for the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving
Funds, including $1.13 billion for Drinking Water and $1.64 billion for Clean
Water. The bill also provides $29 million for lead contamination testing at
schools and child care centers, $20 million for lead reduction projects in
rural areas, and $26 million for water projects in communities working to
improve Safe Drinking Water Act compliance.
- Arts & Culture Programs. The bill
provides $157 million each to the National Endowments for the Arts and
Humanities, an increase of $2 million for each endowment than the FY 2019
enacted level, rejecting the Administration’s proposal to end these programs.
The Agriculture,
Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies bill supports rural
areas in Delaware and provides funding for the Department of Agriculture and
the Food and Drug Administration to continue their work on food safety, product
safety, research, and nutrition programs.
- U.S. Department
of Agriculture (USDA). The spending package maintains funding
for important USDA programs, including $87 million for the Economic Research
Service (ERS), $1.5 billion for the National Institute of Food and Agriculture
(NIFA), $425 million for the Agricultural and Food Research Initiative (AFRI),
and $64 million for the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS),
which play vital roles in enhancing agricultural production, research,
sustainability, and safety. The bill also provides $63 million for USDA’s
Avian Health program, which is critically important to Delaware’s chicken
industry.
- Conservation. This bill also
builds on the successes of the farm bill passed last year by maintaining
support for agricultural conservation programs such as the Conservation
Stewardship Program (CSP), Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP), and
the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). These programs offer
crucial tools to help farmers in Delaware and around the country protect water
quality, preserve land, and enhance wildlife habitats.
- Rural Development. The bill
rejects the Administration’s ill-conceived proposal to eliminate many of USDA’s
rural housing programs. It provides robust funding for Rural Health
Insurance Loans, including $1 billion for Direct Loans, $30 million for
self-help housing, $40 million for Rental Housing Loans, and $27.5 million for
Farm Labor Housing Loans. The bill also provides $950 million in Business
and Industry loans that promote job creation and income generation in rural
areas. The bill also sustains funding to continue to develop rural broadband.
- Nutrition. This bill
funds programs that are an important safety net for some of the most vulnerable
Americans, including Supplemental Nutrition Assistance
Program (SNAP). The bill also provides a more than $400 million
increase for the National School Lunch Program.
The Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related
Agencies bill addresses the housing affordability
crisis in America and sustains funding to invest in our nation’s
infrastructure.
- Amtrak and
Transportation. The legislation includes a modest
increase in funding for Amtrak to $2 billion, including $680 million for
the Northeast Corridor. The bill rejects the President’s proposed
$3.58 billion cut to Department of Transportation programs, allowing for
the strong sustainment of investments in transportation projects that address
congestion and improve the overall safety and infrastructure of our
nation’s roads, bridges, and railways.
- Housing and
Community Development. This bill rejects the
President’s budget proposal to cut $11.96 billion in important housing
programs at a time when Americans are experiencing sky rocketing rents,
wage stagnation, and a shortage of affordable housing. This
bill instead provides strong funding for the Department of
Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) affordable housing and economic
development programs, including $1.25 billion for the HOME Investment
Partnerships Program, $3.325 billion for the Community Development Block
Grant program, and rental assistance programs that communities in Delaware
rely on. This bill provides $100 million for the HUD Choice
Neighborhood grants, which benefit the Wilmington Housing Authority and
REACH Riverside.
- Infrastructure. The bill
provides $1 billion for national infrastructure investments through the
BUILD program.
