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The 2008 Omnibus Appropriations Bill emphasizes the priorities of the Democratic-led 110th Congress and invests in:
Ø Medical Research: $607 million above the President's request to study diseases like Alzheimer's, cancer, Parkinson's, and diabetes.
Ø Health Care Access: $1 billion above the President's request, making targeted increases to programs like Community Health Centers to provide 280,000 more underinsured Americans with access to health care and High Risk Insurance Pools to help 200,000 more people afford health insurance.
Ø Rural Health Care: $147 million above the President's request to help 1,200 small, rural hospitals.
Ø K-12 Education: $767 million above the President's request with targeted increases to Title I, Special Education, Teacher Quality Grants, After School Programs, and Head Start.
Ø Student Aid: $1.7 billion above the President's request for Pell Grants and other student aid programs.
Ø Vocational Education: $575 million above the President's request for technical training at high schools and community colleges.
Ø State and Local Law Enforcement: $1.2 billion above the President's request to help local communities across the country.
Ø Homeland Security Grants: $1.8 billion above the President's request, recognizing that fighting terror must be a top priority.
Ø Highway Infrastructure: Meets the guaranteed levels set in the authorization bill and provides a $1 billion initiative for our bridges.
Ø Energy Security, Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency: $486 million above the President's request for critical investments in Solar Energy, Wind Energy, Biofuels, and Energy Efficiency, with a careful blend of new scientific investments and conservation efforts.
Key Points:
- The Democratic-led 110th Congress has worked throughout this year to restore critical American priorities the President's budget had shortchanged, including for life-saving medical research, K-12 education, Pell Grants and college financial aid, energy independence, and home heating assistance for seniors.
- This omnibus appropriations bill rejects the President's misguided budget cuts in each of those areas and begins to reinvest in the American people's priorities.
- The President's opposition to critical funding-despite strong bipartisan majorities for restoring this funding--will deny Americans the full investment they deserve in these priorities. It is ironic that he tries to claim fiscal responsibility for his opposition-after his disastrous fiscal record of the last seven years-and while spending $10 billion a month for the war in Iraq.
- Given the President's refusal to compromise and the inability of the Senate to produce the 60 votes necessary to move legislation forward, this legislation is the best we can do for the American people this year.
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