Kuhl Votes for Omnibus and Energy Bills

The Hornell Evening Tribune has the story on the omnibus spending bill here. The passage of this bill helps to continue to fund the Iraq War (i.e., for our men and women fighting for us over there) and gives additional support to the Department of Veterans Affairs.

From Congressman Kuhl:

As the clock ticks closer to recess, the Democratic leadership is struggling to complete all of the work of Congress in only a few days. Last night I voted for the Omnibus Appropriation Bill. The passing of this omnibus ends the months of uncertainty for government agencies waiting to find out what their budget will be for the fiscal year that began Oct. 1. This country has gone without a budget for too long and I am pleased that the Democratic majority finally decided to put political games aside and fund the critical agencies that keep our country running. In addition, I secured $5.1 million in federal funds in the Omnibus bill for the 29th district for a wide spectrum of projects. Funding theses vital programs and projects are critical to the economic development of the 29th District. For more information click here.

Today, I voted for the Energy Bill. This energy bill is vastly better than the previous House energy bill that included a $21.5 billion dollar tax increase and was a job killer. This bill raises automobile fuel efficiency standards, mandates additional production of ethanol, reduces home energy consumption, and does not include the offensive tax hikes. While I believe that the bill should have included the renewable portfolio standard for electric utilities, this legislation is a good first step to achieving energy independence.