Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Con. Res. 312, the Budget Resolution for fiscal year 2009.  This proposal fulfills an important commitment that we have made to the American people by investing in fiscally responsible tax relief to millions of households and in programs that strengthen the economy, make America safer, and help families struggling to make ends meet in an economic downturn.

On February 6, I expressed my strong concerns over the misguided budget request that the President transmitted to Congress.  I am very pleased to see that the budget before us today restores many of the important programs that the President proposed to cut, while achieving balance by 2012.  It is more vital than ever that we remain responsive to the needs of the American people, while maintaining strong fiscal stewardship to ensure our financial obligations are not passed along to our children and grandchildren.

Any budgetary blueprint that we expect to bolster the economy must also include an investment in education and job training programs that will promote new employment and ensure our workforce can adapt to the jobs of the future.  Unfortunately, those programs were not priorities for this Administration.  Under the President’s proposal, Rhode Island would see $1.5 million less for after-school programs and a cut of almost $6 million for career and technical education.  In contrast, the Democratic budget resolution would provide $7.1 billion more than the President for vital education, job training, and social services programs nationwide in 2009. 

I am pleased that this resolution addresses the President’s failure to make higher education affordable for students with economic challenges, especially in Rhode Island, where college tuition has risen 45 percent in four years.  This measure also includes crucial funding for the Democratic innovation agenda and the America COMPETES Act, which will enhance our edge in math and science education and research.  To maintain our economic advantage in the coming years, our nation must invest more in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education. 

Also critical to America’s economic prosperity is a budget that promotes fiscally responsible tax relief to millions of families struggling to make ends meet.  In particular, this measure includes a one-year patch to keep millions of hard-working, middle-class Americans outside the ever-widening net of the alternative minimum tax (AMT), and it is fully offset.  In addition, the Democratic budget will extend the R&D tax credit, which will spur economic growth, create new jobs, and help struggling small businesses regain their competitive edge.

Community development and social services programs will play an important role for businesses and families as we attempt to reclaim our economic prosperity, and I am proud to support a budget that funds these initiatives.  This budget restores community and regional development programs, like the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, which provides vital funding for economic and community development in both urban and rural areas nationwide.  The House Democratic budget resolution also reverses cuts to the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and the Weatherization Assistance Program, which helps people actually reduce their energy consumption.  These programs are vital to places like Rhode Island where families are struggling with astronomical heating costs.

This budget resolution also includes $1.2 billion more than the President’s budget for energy programs.  As families face unprecedented costs to heat their homes and put gas in their cars, is it imperative that we fund efficient and renewable energy programs.  H. Con. Res. 312 does this by encouraging the production of renewable energy alternatives, increasing energy efficiency, investing in new energy and vehicle technologies, and training workers for “green collar” jobs.  This resolution also encourages mass transit by increasing funding for Amtrak.  I am proud that Rhode Island has already started many of these initiatives, but Democrats recognize that we need to support them on a broad, nationwide basis.

Equally important during this challenging economic time is the continued need for strong health care funding.  The Democratic budget measure rejects the President’s proposed ten year cut of over $500 billion to both Medicare and Medicaid, two vital safety net programs serving our nation’s elderly, low-income, and disabled citizens.   It also provides an increase over the President’s proposed discretionary health care budget to fund programs that emphasize support for disease-prevention, food safety, and access to quality health care for under-served populations. I am also very pleased to see that this budget will accommodate up to a $50 billion increase to expand children’s health insurance to cover millions of uninsured children.

Health care also remains the highest priority for our nation’s veterans and the brave men and women currently serving in our Armed Forces.  This resolution appropriately addresses veterans’ needs by rejecting the President’s proposed new fees and increasing veterans funding by $3.6 billion relative to the amount needed to keep pace with inflation.  This will provide increased resources for the VA to treat 5.8 million patients in 2009, including 333,275 Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans.  We cannot lose sight of the fact that the VA will play a larger role in the coming years as more servicemembers return from ongoing conflicts.

As the Chairman of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Emerging Threats, Cybersecurity, Science and Technology, I am proud to support a budget that properly invests in our homeland security.  Unlike the President’s budget, this resolution provides robust funding for programs important to state and local law enforcement in Rhode Island, including the State Homeland Security Grant Program, which awarded $34.8 million to Rhode Island from 2004 to 2007, and the Law Enforcement Terrorism Prevention Program (LETPP), from which Rhode Island received $11.5 million in from 2004 to 2006.  By passing the Democratic budget, we can give local law enforcement officials in Rhode Island the tools they need to continue to keep our citizens safe. 

The Democratic budget resolution also makes America safer by investing in our nation’s transportation systems, including highways and waterways, providing sufficient funding as well as a reserve fund to facilitate new infrastructure initiatives.  This budget also meets the President’s funding level for the Department of Defense, but shifts resources to high priorities such as nuclear nonproliferation programs, which was a recommendation of the 9/11 Commission.  Finally, this resolution responds to the current hardships faced by our servicemembers by funding quality of life improvements for the troops as well as their families. 

In this time of uncertainty, the American people are relying on us as decision makers to put forth a plan that will restore our economic prosperity, strengthen our national security, provide relief where it is needed, and promote fiscal discipline.  Today, I am pleased to rise in support of a Democratic proposal that will accomplish each one of these goals.  This budget resolution represents a new roadmap toward achieving the true priorities of Americans, and I urge my colleagues to join me in voting yes on this measure.