Senator Hassan Votes to Approve Final Version of Bipartisan FY19 Funding Bill to Bolster National Security, Combat the Opioid Crisis, Strengthen Workforce Training, Invest in Education, and More

WASHINGTON – Senator Maggie Hassan today voted to approve the final version of a bipartisan funding bill for fiscal year 2019 that invests in critical New Hampshire priorities, including bolstering national security, combating the opioid crisis, strengthening workforce training, investing in education, and more. The funding bill ensures that New Hampshire will receive $22.9 million in State Opioid Response Grants for fiscal year 2019 on top of the state’s $22.9 million for fiscal year 2018.

The bill is one of the several appropriations bills for fiscal year 2019 that the Senate has worked to pass through the regular appropriations process. The legislation also includes a continuing resolution to fund all other federal agencies without a full-year budget by the end of the fiscal year on October 1, in order to avoid a government shutdown.

“This bipartisan bill makes important new investments in many critical priorities for New Hampshire, including bolstering our national security and providing additional federal resources to those combating the deadly opioid epidemic on the front lines,” Senator Hassan said. “We have far more work to do to combat the opioid crisis, and I’ll keep fighting to ensure that states hardest hit by this crisis like New Hampshire have the federal resources they need to stem – and ultimately reverse – the tide of this epidemic.”

“I am also pleased that this bipartisan funding bill invests in expanding economic opportunity for hard-working Granite Staters and supporting innovative businesses by strengthening workforce training programs, including career and technical education programs that I’ve long supported,” Senator Hassan added. “This bipartisan bill also rejects Education Secretary Devos’s anti-public education agenda by investing in higher education, ensuring that our students have the support and protections they need to thrive, and making historic investments in early learning and child care to support working families. I’ll continue working across party lines to build stronger, healthier communities in which all hard-working Granite Staters and Americans have the opportunity to thrive.”

New Hampshire Priorities Included in This Bipartisan FY2019 Appropriations Bill:

Combating the opioid epidemic:

  o   $3.78 billion in health and human services for programs combating the opioid crisis and addressing mental health, including $1.5 billion for Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) funding for State Opioid Response Grants.

• Ensures that New Hampshire will receive $22.9 Million in State Opioid Response Grants for FY2019, on top of the state’s $22.9 million for FY2018
• Senators Hassan and Shaheen played a vital role in helping to secure this funding
• Funds programs to strengthen the health care workforce, including those working to combat the opioid epidemic

Bolstering national security

  o   2.6 percent pay raise for all U.S. military personnel

  o   Research and Development funding for New Hampshire defense companies that are dedicated to supporting the brave men and women who work to keep our country safe, secure, and free

  o   Additional funding to expand cybersecurity research across the Department of Defense

Strengthening the workforce and investing in education:

  o   Invests in Career and Technical Education State Grants

  o   Increases the maximum Pell Grant award to $6,195 – an increase of 1.6 percent from FY2018

  o   Invests in apprenticeship opportunities

  o   Makes an historic increase in funding for Child Care and Development Block Grant program by providing $5.27 billion

Building healthier communities

  o   Preserves funding for the Title X program, which is the only federal grant program solely dedicated to family planning and related preventative services

• Increases funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH)

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