Vicente Gonzalez: “I rise in support for H.R. 3666, the conference report making appropriations for fiscal year 1997 for VA, HUD and…”

“I rise in support for H.R. 3666, the conference report making appropriations for fiscal year 1997 for VA, HUD and independent agencies, although I continue to be deeply troubled by the severe budgetary limitations on domestic discretionary spending particularly for the most vulnerable and working families, funding for housing and community development programs in H.R. 3666 do not face any deeper cuts than they faced last year, nor does funding for the environment, veterans and NASA. And the extreme position of the House was overridden with respect to the AmeriCorps. Thankfully, the circumstances surrounding consideration of this conference report today are vastly different from those last year. There are no noxious legislative riders. Instead, the conferees included authorizing provisions, both non-germane and germane, that I strongly support. The mental health parity provisions, the spina bifida provisions, and the 48 hour hospital stay for new mothers are important and humane health policy reforms. The public housing and section 8 policy reform provisions are the very provisions that the authorizing committees are unable to bring to the House floor. We are hopelessly deadlocked on a very important public housing reform bill because the House majority refuses to compromise on many of its extreme provisions. This appropriations conference report includes the provisions on which we all agree.”