Susan Collins: “I, too, urge our colleagues to reject this motion that calls for the Appropriations Committee to put forward a year-long…”

“I, too, urge our colleagues to reject this motion that calls for the Appropriations Committee to put forward a year-long continuing resolution for fiscal year 2024. Adopting this motion would wipe out the work of the appropriations committee that led to 12 stand-alone bills being reported last summer with overwhelming bipartisan support. It would also lock in dangerously inadequate funding levels for our national security and lead to cuts in other vital programs serving our veterans, older Americans, low-income families. It would stall biomedical research, harm our farmers, and slow progress that we are making on our infrastructure. A year-long CR would result in defense funding levels that are nearly $27 billion less than the President's request in the Fiscal Responsibility Act. According to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, under a year-long CR: Thousands of [defense] programs will be impacted with the most devastating impacts being to personnel, the nuclear triad modernization, shipbuilding and maintenance, munitions productions and replenishments, and the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command priorities. A year-long CR would result in our military being less ready to respond to the serious security threats around the globe. I urge my colleagues to reject this motion and support the reasonable approach of completing our work. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Kansas.”