DeLauro Statement on Two-Year Budget Agreement

WASHINGTON, DC—Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) released the following statement today on the two-year budget agreement negotiated by congressional leadership. DeLauro is the senior Democrat on the subcommittee responsible for funding the departments of Education, Labor, and Health and Human Services.

“This bipartisan budget agreement is long over-due and will provide much needed relief from the harmful and indiscriminate across-the-board sequester cuts. Most importantly, the funding increases will be shared equally between defense and non-defense programs, as I and 128 of my colleagues called for yesterday. This balanced approach will particularly help our non-defense discretionary programs, such as education, public health, job training, and many other important programs. I hope that the Labor-Health and Human Services-Education programs, which have seen some of the worst cuts over the past five years, will see a significant increase in funding as a result of this deal.

“These programs directly impact people’s lives. They fund lifesaving biomedical research. They equip our nation to deal with public health emergencies. They level the playing field for low-income children looking to learn. They help Americans get the skills they need to find a job in a tough economy. By investing in our people, they support our nation’s economic competitiveness.

“I am also glad to see that this agreement will protect millions of seniors from a major increase in Medicare Part B premiums and deductibles next year. This agreement ensures that all social security benefits can be paid in full by extending the solvency of the Social Security Disability Insurance Trust Fund. It also keeps our promise to our nation’s seniors, with no benefit cuts to Medicare or Social Security.

“And the budget agreement deals with one of our most pressing concerns: affirming the full faith and credit of the United States. A clean debt limit suspension avoids the economic turmoil that would come if we play politics in this delicate area.”


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