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

“I rise in qualified support for H.R. 3666 which makes the appropriations for the fiscal year 1997 for VA, HUD, and independent agencies. I offer qualified support because I continue to be deeply troubled by the severe budgetary limitations on domestic discretionary spending, particularly for the most vulnerable and working families in favor of providing tax cuts for the wealthy. These rigid and mean-spirited limitations sadly find me and many of my colleagues cheering when the housing programs in H.R. 3666 simply hold their own and do not face any deeper cuts than they faced last year. That is the situation. Thankfully, the circumstances surrounding consideration of the bill today are vastly different from those last year. In a strange twist, I actually commend this bill to my colleagues. It takes a very bad hand dealt from a shorted deck to the Committee on Appropriations and turns it into a winning hand so far. I hope that as the legislative process continues that this bill will improve. I say this because funding for critical housing and community development programs remains level or slightly increased from last year.”