Sanford Bishop: “When I spoke on the floor about finishing the FY19 bills, we were in the midst of what turned out to be the longest…”

“When I spoke on the floor about finishing the FY19 bills, we were in the midst of what turned out to be the longest government shutdown in our history. Thankfully, that is behind us. But to ensure it stays behind us, we need to pass this conference report. The bipartisan leadership and staff and the conferees have done an admirable job. This bill is good but not perfect. It makes significant investments in rural development; it includes language setting aside funding for persistent poverty counties; it has a modest increase for the Farm Production and Conservation mission area; and domestic nutrition programs are all well-funded. On the international side, the bill provides good funding for Food for Peace and the McGovern-Dole Program. Finally, FDA gets $3 billion, including significant investments to fight the opioid epidemic. But I must say, candidly, that I have some regrets. My strongest regret, however, is that we are not considering the disaster supplemental today. The House and Senate passed separate bills a month ago that would have provided desperately needed relief to our farmers, ranchers, and communities coast to coast, in Hawaii and the territories that were devastated by tragic disasters, but those bills must still be reconciled. The country must get this disaster bill passed, and get it passed soon. The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Beyer). The time of the gentleman has expired.”