The House Appropriations Committee (HAC) on Tuesday voted 32-17 to approve a $39.3 billion discretionary spending bill for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in FY ’16, $2.1 billion less than requested and about $900 million less than the Senate Appropriations Committee agreed to.
The House and Senate must still vote on their respective versions of the bill.
Several amendments were agreed to as part of the HAC markup, including one that prohibits funds for the Transportation Security Administration to be used for uniforms that include badges that look like law enforcement badges. Another amendment that was approved on a 28-21 vote prohibits certain state and local grants from going to sanctuary cities, which are cities that shelter illegal immigrants.
The SAC bill provides funding for a ninth National Security Cutter (NSC) for the Coast Guard while the HAC bill does not. The Coast Guard’s program of record calls for eight of the high-endurance NSCs.
The HAC bill adds more funding for border security and eliminates funding for new efforts to consolidate the DHS headquarters operations. The SAC bill provides level funding for both requests.
The homeland security bill was the final bill on the HAC’s agenda.
“With the approval of the 12th bill today, all committee work on funding measures is completed, the first time this has happened since 2009, and this has been done at a rapid pace with several weeks before the August recess,” Rep. Hal Rogers (R-Ky.), the committee chairman, said in a statement. He added that “With time dwindling before the end of the fiscal year, it is my hope that all sides can come together to find common ground on an overall budget agreement. While a short-term finding extension may be needed to provide additional time for negotiations, it is my intention to shepherd all appropriations bills to final completion as quickly as possible.”
The federal government’s fiscal year begins on Oct. 1.