Patrick Leahy: “the Budget Control Act of 2011 expires this year, and that is a good thing. This law led to a decade of underfunding our…”

“the Budget Control Act of 2011 expires this year, and that is a good thing. This law led to a decade of underfunding our domestic priorities, from which it will take years to recover. Right now, in communities across the country, our infrastructure is crumbling, millions of Americans cannot access Federal programs for which they qualify, and we are falling behind in investing in science, research, and development on the global economic stage--all of this because the Budget Control Act set artificial and unrealistically low caps on discretionary spending, and it inflicted arbitrary, across-the-board spending cuts known as sequestration. President Biden understands the real consequences of this decade-old decision. That is why tomorrow, President Biden will propose a 16- percent increase for nondefense investments in his budget. We cannot build back better until we recover the ground we have already lost. I want to give a few examples of what I mean. For many low-income families with young children, the beginning of summer means the end of school breakfast and lunch programs and waking up every morning dreading how you will be able to put food on the table for your children. Basic nutrition is a basic requirement for child health, development, and education. The Summer EBT program is meant to help these families bridge to this gap, with an extra $30 or $60 per child every month.…”