July 30, 2021

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 29, 2021

Contact: Hannah Muldavin, Hannah.Muldavin@mail.house.gov

House Passes Government Funding Bills that Include Nearly $6 Million for Maryland’s Sixth District and Major Funding Increases for Programs to Fight Opioid Epidemic, Support NIH

WASHINGTON – Today, Rep. David Trone (MD-06) announced the House passed H.R. 4502, which includes seven government funding bills containing multiple provisions authored by Trone. The bill also includes billions in funding to fight the opioid epidemic and fund the National Institutes of Health (NIH). These provisions include:

• $5.5 billion for substance use treatment — $1.6 billion over last year, 
• $2.8 billion for Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Block Grants — $1 billion increase over last year
• $2 billion for State Opioid Response Grants — $500 million increase over last year
• $136.5 million for Medication Assisted Treatment — $56 million increase over last year
• $49 billion for the National Institutes of Mental Health — $6.5 billion over last year

As a member of the House Appropriations Committee and the Subcommittees on Transportation-Housing and Urban Development and Military Construction-Veterans Affairs, Trone led the inclusion of multiple programs in these funding bills. 

The bill also includes funding for nine community projects Trone requested that would bring nearly $6 million to Maryland’s Sixth District. These projects include: 

• $1,500,000 to create an Asian American Service Center: This funding will be used to create a center in Frederick that focuses on improving services for vulnerable populations and that addresses the rise in Asian hate crimes.
• $1,000,000 5G Job Training Bootcamp for Communities of Color: The funding will create a comprehensive technology job training pilot program and deploy 5G and small cells antenna systems in Montgomery County. 
• $883,574 for the Garrett County Broadband Expansion Project: The project will ensure that 270 households, 24 farms, and 17 businesses from Route 135 at Mountain Lake Park, Maryland to Bloomington, Maryland receive high-speed internet.
• $850,000 for a Crisis Stabilization Center in Frederick: The crisis stabilization center will provide effective community-based care to individuals in the middle of a behavioral health crisis. 
• $500,000 to Repurpose Vacant Properties in the City of Hagerstown: The initiative will eliminate blighted and abandoned properties throughout the city.
• $500,000 to Rebuild South Germantown Recreational Park: The funding will be used to repair the roads and trails that have deteriorated and are in poor condition.
• $475,000 for a Crisis Stabilization Unit: The funding for the Washington County Health Department will create three crisis stabilization beds at Meritus Medical Center. Currently, Washington County has no crisis beds for behavioral health.
• $325,000 for the EveryMind Crisis Prevention and Intervention Services Capacity Building: The money will go towards upgrading EveryMind’s technology infrastructure so that the organization can virtually help those suffering from anxiety, stress, and depression. 
• $187,500 to Update the The Allegany College of Maryland Workforce Development and Community Theatre: The funding will enhance staff training and redesign the theatre. The theatre hasn’t received updates since the 1970’s.

“I’m proud to have secured funding for programs that will provide Marylanders with the support they need. We must invest in job training initiatives, mental health resources, programs for those suffering from substance use disorder, medical research, and upgrading our transportation systems,” said Congressman David Trone. “As a member of the Appropriations Committee, I won’t ever stop fighting to provide critical resources for my constituents, and I’m glad I was able to secure funding that will benefit our community.” 

H.R. 4502 includes government funding bills that will create good-paying American jobs, grow opportunity for the middle class and small businesses, and provide a lifeline for working families and the vulnerable. Included in this package are seven government funding bills: Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies; Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies; Energy, Water Development, and Related Agencies; Financial Services and General Government; Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies; Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies; and Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies. More Information about these government funding bills can be found below:

How These Government funding Bills Benefit Maryland’s Sixth District

Job Training: 

• The funding will support middle class and working families by helping Marylanders obtain good-paying jobs. There are 13,000 youth and 96,000 adults in our district who are eligible to receive federally funded job training. The bill provides $344,000 in additional WIOA funds for job training in the district.  

Public Education:

• The bill increases Title I funding that will help the 17,000 children, including 13,000 children living in poverty in our district. Our public schools will receive $37.2 million in additional funding to support these children who are at risk of failing out of school.

Veterans’ Health Care: 

• The bill brings an additional $27.1 million in funding for veterans’ healthcare to the district. The Veterans Health Administration (VHA)will now be able to improve access to health care in key areas like women’s health, mental health, and opioid treatment.
• The funds will also provide more veterans with home and community-based services,  more recruitment and training opportunities for nurses and doctors, and support for medical research. 

Government Funding Bills in More Detail

Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies 

• In 2022 the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies bill provides $253.8 billion, an increase of $55.2 billion – 28 percent – above 2021. With this historic increase, the legislation:
  • Creates and sustains good-paying American jobs through investments in job training, apprenticeship programs, and worker protection
  • Grows opportunity with transformative investments in education, including record funding for high-poverty schools and students with disabilities, and strong increases for programs that expand access to post-secondary education
  • Supports middle class and working families with increased funding for child care and development programs, Head Start, and preschool development grants
  • Strengthens lifesaving biomedical research with increased funding for the National Institutes of Health, including funding to establish the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health
  • Bolsters our public health infrastructure with more resources for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and for states and local governments to strengthen infrastructure and capacity
  • Addresses our nation’s most urgent health crises, including maternal health, mental health, gun violence, and opioid abuse, while making strides to reduce persistent and unacceptable health disparities
  • Advances equal treatment for women by increasing funding for the range of health services, including family planning, covered by Title X and repealing the discriminatory Hyde Amendment
• From difficulties in accessing affordable child care and educational opportunities, to health care and safe working environments, our nation faces many challenges that have only been further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. By increasing funding for job training, apprenticeship programs, worker protection, educational opportunity, child care, and public health infrastructure, we are strengthening working families and supporting the vulnerable at every stage of their lives.

 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies

• In 2022, the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies bill provides $196.7 billion for USDA programs including those funded on an annual basis and those such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. The legislation:
  • Tackles hunger and nutrition insecurity by expanding access to fruits and vegetables to 6.4 million people through WIC and ensuring 45 million people in SNAP-eligible families get the benefits they need. The bill also invests in the health of America’s kids through Child Nutrition programs, such as school meals.
  • Grows opportunity and lifts up rural communities by increasing funding for rural broadband, connecting more communities to the internet, which last year got more than 100,000 people connected to the 21st century economy.
  • Rebuilds our public health and consumer safety infrastructure with increased funding to address maternal and infant nutrition, including resources for the ‘Closer to Zero’ initiative to reduce exposure to toxic elements in babies’ and young children’s food, emerging food-related chemical and toxicological issues, drug safety oversight, as well as providing additional resources for inspections, and drug and device supply chain monitoring and surveillance. The bill also invests in our public health infrastructure by modernizing FDA’s data infrastructure to better ensure the safety and security of the food and medical supply chain.
  • Confronts the climate crisis with $347.4 million across USDA to address the impacts of climate change. These investments are aimed particularly to tackle the climate crisis in farming and rural communities and include research to monitor, measure, and mitigate climate change, accelerate climate smart agriculture practices, reduce greenhouse gases, and advance clean energy technologies.
  • Provides important investments to ensure equitable participation in USDA programs. The bill provides funding to address racial inequities, including increases for extension, research, and capacity grants at our 1890 land grants, 1994 land grants, and Hispanic serving institutions to help strengthen the pipeline for the future of agriculture. It also improves outreach and program access to historically underserved communities and supports USDA’s Office of Civil Rights.
• Our farmers, ranchers and rural communities feed the world and drive our nation’s economy. And, in a country as rich as ours, no American should ever go hungry. Through the resources in this bill, we can tackle hunger and ensure a safe food supply while lifting up farming and rural communities nationwide.

 Energy, Water Development, and Related Agencies

• In 2022, the Energy, Water Development, and Related Agencies bill provides $53.226 billion, an increase of $1.474 billion above 2021. The legislation:
  • Creates tens of thousands of good-paying jobs with a focus on deploying clean energy technologies and the green jobs of tomorrow in communities across the country
  • Confronts the climate crisis with more than $14 billion of transformative investments in clean energy and science, which will help develop clean, affordable, and secure American energy
  • Rebuilds our nation’s water infrastructure, critical to protecting communities from more frequent and severe storms and addressing the worsening drought
• It is long past time we made addressing the existential threat of climate change a national priority. By providing increased funding to promote science and the deployment of more clean energy technologies, while rebuilding our nation’s water infrastructure and creating more green jobs, we are ensuring our nation’s energy and water systems are resilient and prepared to meet the challenges of the future. 

 Financial Services and General Government

• With $29.1 billion in funding, an increase of $4.8 billion over 2021, the 2022 Financial Services and General Government funding bill:
  • Assists small businesses and entrepreneurs through the Small Business Administration and Community Development Financial Institutions
  • Protects our democracy with Election Security Grants to ensure the integrity and safety of our elections
  • Rebuilds the Internal Revenue Service to finally crack down on big corporations and the wealthy who aren’t paying their fair share and to provide better customer service to working families navigating the tax system
  • Supports working and middle-class families by increasing funding for consumer protection activities at the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the Federal Trade Commission
  • Confronts the climate crisis by providing funding to start the transitions of the Federal vehicle fleet to electric and zero emission vehicles
• With these investments, the Financial Services and General Government bill invests in our country’s future and helps ensure our economy and our communities can recover and rebuild following the many challenges of the past few years.   

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies

• The 2022 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies bill provides $43.4 billion in regular appropriations, an increase of $7.3 billion – 20.2 percent – above 2021. There is also an additional $2.45 billion of funding for fire suppression. The legislation:
  • Creates good-paying American jobs through investments in renewable energy development, including offshore wind, and a national initiative to reclaim abandoned mines and cap orphan oil and gas wells
  • Supports Native American families by investing in a strong and resilient Indian Country, including through education and health care programs
  • Confronts the climate crisis by expanding environmental enforcement efforts, creating a Civilian Climate Corps, and launching a renewed focus on land and water conservation
  • Dramatically expands environmental justice efforts to address unacceptable pollution in communities of color
  • Honors the federal government’s responsibilities to Native Americans
• By creating good-paying jobs while confronting the climate crisis, supporting Native American communities, and enforcing our environmental laws against big polluters, we will set our nation on a brighter course for the 21st century.

 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies

• In 2022, the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies bill provides $279.9 billion in total funding, an increase of $28.1 billion – more than 10 percent – above 2021. The legislation:
  • Supports our veterans with investments in health care, including targeted investments that advance women’s health, mental health, and homelessness assistance
  • Rebuilds our infrastructure with strong investments to construct critical facilities on military installations including family housing and child care centers, and build, repair, and retrofit Veterans Affairs facilities
  • Protects our national security with investments to respond to the challenges posed by Russian and Chinese aggression
  • Confronts the climate crisis with increased climate change and resiliency funding to help military installations adapt to rising sea levels and worsening natural disasters
• These investments in our servicemembers, veterans, and families, as well as in our nation’s military infrastructure and climate resiliency are crucial to ensuring the strength of our national security posture and will go a long way in helping to ensure our nation is primed to respond to future challenges.

 Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies

• In 2022, the Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies bill provides funding of $84.1 billion, an increase of $8.7 billion – more than 11 percent – above 2021. This includes an increase of $6.8 billion is for the Department of Housing and Urban Development and $1.9 billion for the Department of Transportation. The legislation:
  • Creates tens of thousands of good-paying American jobs by rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure with significant investments in airports, highways, transit, passenger rail, and port systems
  • Grows opportunity through homeownership and rental assistance, including more than 125,000 new housing vouchers targeted to individuals and families experiencing or at risk of homelessness and over 4,000 new units for seniors and persons with disabilities
  • Supports the vulnerable with public housing safety, maintenance and improvement investments, such as the remediation of lead paint and radon and installation of energy and water efficient systems
  • Promotes safe transportation and housing with a skilled and growing workforce to conduct inspections, mitigate hazards, and study emerging threats and innovative solutions
  • Reduces emissions, increases resiliency, and addresses historical inequities in transportation and housing programs through targeted grants and investments
• Safe, strong, and resilient infrastructure is fundamental to the success of our nation’s workers and families. By providing significant investments to rebuild our nation’s crumbling infrastructure while providing more affordable housing opportunities we can create good-paying American jobs, grow opportunities for the middle class, and support our nation’s most vulnerable.  

Congressman David Trone was elected to the House of Representatives in November 2018 to serve the 6th District of Maryland, which includes all or part of Montgomery, Frederick, Washington, Allegany, and Garrett Counties. Trone serves on the Appropriations, Veterans’ Affairs, and Joint Economic Committees in the 117th Congress and previously served on the Education and Labor and Foreign Affairs Committees. In Congress, Trone is fighting to make progress on issues that matter to Marylanders, including the mental health and addiction crises, criminal justice reform, and funding for medical research.

###