Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Friday, U.S. Congressman Mike Waltz (FL-6) issued the following statement in opposition to the House Majority’s massive, partisan Fiscal Year 2022 Budget Reconciliation Package and the over $40 billion in spending approved by the Science, Space, and Technology Committee:

“Unfortunately, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have taken this opportunity during this budget markup to recklessly and irresponsibly increase our federal government’s spending. Pushing this one-time infusion of cash deeply undermines the thoughtful bipartisan legislation this Committee has worked tirelessly on. Rather than sustainably scaling up funding over the long-term, this reconciliation package floods agencies with more than $40 billion — without a plan and without enough time to responsibly scale up research or make the long-term investments necessary for America to compete with the Chinese Communist Party,” said Rep. Waltz. “I was glad we were able to agree on many issues in this markup, as well as approve my own amendments and priorities to make responsible, secure investments through the National Science Foundation (NSF) and ensure Department of Energy projects do not fund the Chinese Communist Party nor Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.”

The Committee included Waltz’s language to:

• Prohibit the Department of Energy to construct, finance, support, or maintain energy projects with materials or labor sourced from or manufactured in China or Afghanistan
• Ensure NSF’s Office of Research, Security, Strategy, and Policy has the resources to protect taxpayer-funded research and technologies from our adversaries seeking to exploit it (passed by voice)

“House and Senate Democratic leaders were unable to put politics aside, and instead, have packed this underlying legislation with $3.5 trillion in reckless, politically-motivated spending,” said Rep. Waltz. “While I support some of the research and development provisions discussed today, I cannot support legislation that spends our children and grandchildren’s money recklessly and hinders our ability to maintain global leadership in science and innovation, and compete with China.”

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