House Republicans on Wednesday passed what is expected to be the final government funding bill before the August recess, proposing deep cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency’s budget for fiscal year 2025.
Department of the Interior and EPA annual budget bills passed The bill, which passed late Wednesday, was approved by a vote of 210 to 205. Democrats have strongly opposed the bill over proposed budget cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Park Service, the Smithsonian Museums and the National Gallery of Art.
The narrow passage of the bill comes as House Republicans’ ambitious hopes of passing all 12 of the year’s government funding bills before the August recess crumble. House leaders canceled votes on three other budget bills this week, withdrew one at the last minute on Tuesday night and announced Wednesday they would end their annual summer recess a week early.
Republican leaders were seen discussing the matter with party members during the vote on Wednesday night, as the outcome looked precarious at several points.
“They put this bill together pretty well. They called and said they just wanted to talk, which was good. It ended up touching a lot of people’s hearts and minds,” Rep. Ralph Norman of South Carolina, a hardline conservative who was undecided on the bill until he backed it Wednesday night, told The Hill.
However, he also expressed dissatisfaction with some amendments proposed by conservatives that were rejected during the vote.
Five Republicans voted against the bill, while one Democrat voted in favor.
The bill would be difficult to pass in the Democratic-controlled Senate in its current form, but it would provide a starting point for Republicans ahead of final budget negotiations with the Senate.
Speaking on the House floor this week, Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), chairman of the subcommittee that wrote the bill, said: Admitted “Cutting funding is never easy, but with our national debt approaching $35 trillion and inflation at unacceptable levels, this bill had to make tough choices to curb unnecessary discretionary spending.”
“This bill prioritizes critical needs and addresses the specific interests and concerns that were brought to our attention through more than 8,800 requests from Members of Congress,” he said, noting that the bill also “takes important steps to reduce the regulatory burden imposed by the EPA and promote domestic energy production.”
He also defended the bill as a measure that would “permanently lock in pay for wildfire firefighters, wisely manage our public lands, uphold our promises to Indian reservations, and restore the fiscal responsibility we need to get our economy back on track.”
The bill’s funding levels call for an overall decrease compared to current spending levels, the Republican summary said. outlineIt would cut funding to the EPA by 20 percent, cut funding to the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service by more than 8 percent, eliminate funding for the Presidio Trust, and drastically cut funding to the Council on Environmental Quality.
At the same time, Republicans point to increased funding for the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Wildfire Management and the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund.
Democrats have sharply criticized the proposed cuts, arguing the bill does not do enough to address climate change.
“Climate change is a clear and imminent danger, and experts agree that bold action must be taken to avert massive, irreversible catastrophe,” Rep. Chellie Pingree of Maine, the ranking Democrat on the Simpson subcommittee, said on the floor. this week“So I’m very disappointed and frustrated by the bill that’s before us that completely ignores the reality of global warming and fails to recognize that we need to do more, not less.”
“This bill abandons the most vulnerable groups who currently suffer disproportionately from adverse environmental impacts, including the vast rural areas that I and many of my opposite-party colleagues represent,” she added.
She also pointed to what she and Democrats call “poison pill” provisions in the bills, as Republicans have pursued a slate of partisan provisions across the 12 budget bills to solidify their support in Congress, but at the expense of support from the other side.
