CONSOLIDATED APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2026

On 2026-01-22, Representative Ken Calvert (R-CA-41) delivered a floor speech titled "CONSOLIDATED APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2026" in the House. The speech addressed healthcare and also covered taxes, the environment. It referenced legislation including HR7148, HR7006, HR7147, among other bills.

CONSOLIDATED APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2026

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 15 (Thursday, January 22, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 15 (Thursday, January 22, 2026)] [House] [Pages H1185-H1297] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] CONSOLIDATED APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2026 General Leave Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H.R. 7148, and that I may include tabular material on the same. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Oklahoma? There was no objection. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 1014 and rule XVIII, the Chair declares the House in the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union for the consideration of the bill, H.R. 7148. The Chair appoints the gentlewoman from Illinois (Mrs. Miller) to preside over the Committee of the Whole. {time} 1154 In the Committee of the Whole Accordingly, the House resolved itself into the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union for the [[Page H1186]] consideration of the bill (H.R. 7148) making further consolidated appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2026, and for other purposes, with Mrs. Miller of Illinois in the chair. The Clerk read the title of the bill. The CHAIR. Pursuant to the rule, the bill is considered read the first time. General debate shall be confined to the bill and shall not exceed 1 hour equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on Appropriations or their respective designees. The gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Cole) and the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro) each will control 30 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Cole). Mr. COLE. Madam Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise today in support of H.R. 7148, the Consolidated Appropriations Act. The legislation before us is part of the final chapter of the fiscal year 2026 appropriations process. This is where months of hard work turn into results. You see, we aren't here for just another stopgap, temporary fix. We are here to finish the job by providing full-year funding. Specifically, this package addresses core areas of national consequence: Defense, Labor-Health-Education, and Transportation- Housing and Urban Development. These aren't abstract concepts on a page. They affect how Americans live, work, learn, and travel every day. That matters because behind every line is an impact: a military family with more certainty in their budget, a senior depending on a rural hospital, a student pursuing technical training for a good-paying job, and a traveler trusting that the plane they board will land safely. These bills were written with those priorities in mind. Our Defense bill sends a clear message: America's military will remain the strongest in the world. It restores deterrence by strengthening readiness, modernizing capabilities, and reinforcing the defense industrial base. The bill also supports our servicemembers with a well-earned pay raise. Together, these investments ensure our forces can deter conflict and win decisively if deterrence fails. The Labor-HHS title invests in the long-term strength of the country. We support lifesaving biomedical research, strengthen workforce training, and expand access to care, particularly in rural communities. These investments help students gain skills, workers find opportunities, and communities stay healthy. Through Transportation-Housing and Urban Development, we keep America moving. From roads and bridges to ports and skies, the bill strengthens the safety and reliability of vital transit systems. It modernizes air traffic control, supports the hiring of needed controllers, and accelerates the deployment of new technologies. It also empowers local communities through programs that promote economic development and provide housing assistance to vulnerable Americans. This package reflects a nation that is strong, prepared, and ready for the future. These are real deliverables and real wins. This process has underscored a very important point: Congress can make tough decisions that are necessary to govern this country and chart a bold course with President Donald Trump. Our objectives were clear, and we followed through. Republicans set out to spend less, and the total FY26 funding does just that. We committed to codifying DOGE cuts, and these bills cut waste and rein in government bloat. We promised to deliver America's agenda, which is why we put President Trump's priorities in place and end the Biden-era mandates. This is what responsible governance looks like. I commend the detailed work of our chairmen--Representatives Robert Aderholt, Ken Calvert, and Steve Womack--whose stewardship ensured this package was both thoughtful in substance and built to deliver results. I thank their accompanying ranking members--Representatives Rosa DeLauro, Betty McCollum, and James Clyburn--for their support and hard work. I also want to recognize the dedicated staff whose work made this possible, particularly our chief clerk, Susan Ross. This measure is the product of sustained engagement and serious legislating. It advances reforms, delivers full-year funding, and reflects a Congress doing its job. I thank each Member for their time, and I urge all Members to support this bipartisan measure. Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time. {time} 1200 Ms. DeLAURO. Madam Chair, I yield myself 5 minutes. Madam Chair, I rise in support of the measure before us today, which includes the Labor-HHS-Education, Transportation-Housing and Urban Development, and the Department of Defense appropriations bills. I will begin by thanking Ranking Member Betty McCollum and Ranking Member Jim Clyburn for their fine work on the Defense and Transportation bills, respectively. Both bills are remarkably strong agreements that serve as testaments to their tenacity as negotiators. I also thank Chairman Calvert and Chairman Womack and my counterpart on the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Subcommittee, Chairman Aderholt, for his partnership in reaching a strong agreement on our bill, as well. None of this would have been possible without the incredible work of the committee staff. In particular, Stephen Steigleder, Jennifer Chartrand, Christina Monroe, Jackie Kilroy, Laurie Mignone, Philip Tizzani, Nora Faye, Ed Etzkorn, and Jason Gray. Lastly, I express my appreciation for my friend and counterpart on the full committee, Chairman Cole, and the majority staff. This package is a strong, bipartisan, bicameral agreement that rejects the Trump administration's efforts to eviscerate public services and reasserts Congress' power of the purse. It rejects efforts to dismantle the Department of Education, instead providing $79 billion in funding for K-12 education programs, financial aid, support for students with disabilities, and much more. It redoubles our efforts in investments in biomedical research, increasing NIH funding by $415 million, and supporting efforts to develop treatments and cures for cancer, Alzheimer's, ALS, and other deadly diseases. It provides more than $9 billion for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to protect and promote our Nation's public health. It increases funding for SAMHSA to provide mental health support and to advance our battle against addiction. This bill supports families feeling the squeeze from the cost-of- living crisis by investing in affordable housing and protecting funding for rental assistance as the cost of housing continues to climb. These and other efforts will prevent more than 4 million American households from being evicted. Additionally, this package provides funding for a 3.8 percent pay raise for the brave men and women who serve our country in uniform. It increases funding for medical research by $1.7 billion, supporting research to develop treatment for diseases and service-related injuries. At a time of international uncertainty, this bill shores up support for our European allies and does not include any additional funding for operations in Venezuela or the Caribbean. You can measure the success of these negotiations by the distance between what was initially proposed and what was ultimately agreed to. When you look at the numbers, it is astonishing. In the Labor-HHS bill alone, we rejected more than $50 billion in proposed cuts. The Transportation-Housing bill provides $46 billion more than the White House had proposed. There are over 50 programs across these two bills that Republicans proposed to outright eliminate but are ultimately funded in this package. I consider that a success. In addition, this package contains important provisions to rein in the Trump administration. It provides funding levels, removing ambiguity that the White House has sought to exploit in the past. It establishes deadlines for required spending, provides minimum staffing thresholds to prevent agencies from being hollowed out, and increases notification requirements to ensure the administration is [[Page H1187]] complying with the laws that Congress makes. I am proud of the work that was done on these bills, and I encourage my colleagues to support this package. Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. COLE. Madam Chair, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Aderholt), my very good friend and distinguished chairman of the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee. Mr. ADERHOLT. Madam Chair, I rise today, again, as my colleagues have, to ask for support for the final FY26 appropriations package. It completes the culmination of a lot of hard work from a lot of folks who fulfilled their commitment to the American people. As chairman of the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Huma

Referenced legislation: HCONRES71, SCONRES14, HRES1014, HR7006, HR7147, HR7148