Portman issues statement on Omnibus Appropriations bill

U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio) released the following statement on his vote against the Omnibus Appropriations bill:
 
“While I appreciate the hard work by colleagues to put together this massive Omnibus Appropriations bill, I believe the total spending is too much during this time of unacceptably high annual deficits and record debt.
 
“I also oppose the budget gimmicks called ChIMPS, or Changes in Mandatory Programs. These gimmicks allow Congress to count artificial offsets against new spending, thus circumventing the spending caps by about $18 billion.
 
“These large omnibus bills that have not gone through an open process are the wrong way to legislate. Rather than a 2,000-page omnibus bill that lawmakers have only had a few days to read – with no amendments allowed – Congress should get back to regular order, including passing appropriations bills based on a budget and having an open amendment process.
 

“I am also disappointed that my Pension Accountability Act was not included in the Omnibus. My proposal will give tens of thousands of Ohio workers who are facing pension cuts through no fault of their own a chance to be heard. On another important pension issue, I was disappointed that the Miners Protection Act was not included in the Omnibus.
 
“I am pleased that the Omnibus Appropriations bill does prioritize several projects important to Ohio workers, including critical funding to avoid significant layoffs otherwise scheduled for the clean up effort at the former Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Pike County and the NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. It also includes important funding for security for the Republican National Convention; the American Centrifuge Project in Piketon to develop our nation’s only domestic capability for enriching uranium crucial to our national security; the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative which is a crucial tool for local protection and restoration efforts on Lake Erie; Stryker vehicles to be produced at the Lima tank plant; upgrades to the Youngstown Air Reserve Station; and substantial new funding for Ohio for abandoned homes in the Hardest Hit Fund which will help to address blight in low-income neighborhoods.

“I am also pleased that additional support was provided to our troops and intelligence agencies at a time when the terrorist threat is increasing.

“Finally, I was supportive of the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act, which provided important relief for American families and small businesses.”