(Washington, DC) – Today, U.S. Senators Patty Murray (D-WA) and Susan Collins (R-ME), issued the following joint statement as they officially assume the roles of Senate Appropriations Committee Chair and Vice Chair, respectively.
“We look forward to leading this Committee in making life better for families back home and addressing the many pressing challenges our nation is facing here and abroad. We understand the enormous responsibility of this Committee, which is why we are dedicated to working together in a bipartisan way, as we have done so often in the past, to deliver the kind of results the American people deserve from their government. We were sent here to solve problems, and that’s exactly what we are going to do.
“That starts with marking up our appropriations bills and bringing them to the floor in a timely way so we can fund the government in a responsible and bipartisan manner. It also means continuing the use of Congressionally Directed Spending so Senators can support the needs and projects of their states. And perhaps most important, it means listening to each other and talking through challenges so we can find common ground on sensible solutions for the American people.”
Patty Murray was elected by the people of Washington state in 1992, making history as the first woman to serve the state in the U.S. Senate. She has been a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee since her first term and has previously led: the Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies; the Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies: and the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies.
Senator Murray became the first woman Chair of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee during the 112th Congress and served as the first woman Chair of the Senate Budget Committee during the 113th Congress. As Chair of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, Murray worked closely with Republicans to spotlight the needs of women veterans and to expand benefits and support for veteran caregivers. As Chair of the Budget Committee, she worked with House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan to pass the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 in order to avert fiscal disaster. She most recently served as Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee—where she negotiated and passed significant bipartisan legislation with her Republican counterparts: rewriting No Child Left Behind, passing the 21st Century Cures Act, delivering major COVID relief, passing sweeping public health preparedness measures, and much more. Senator Murray’s full biography can be found HERE.
First elected in 1996, Susan Collins ranks eighth in Senate seniority and is the most senior Republican woman. She is the first Republican woman to be elected to a fifth term, the first Republican woman to be the Vice Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and the first Mainer to be Vice Chairman of the Appropriations Committee in 82 years.
Senator Collins first joined the Appropriations Committee in 2009 and previously served as both the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies. She is also the former Chairman of the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and the Aging Committee. Throughout her Senate service, Senator Collins has worked with members of both parties to advance landmark laws to improve the lives of all Americans. Last Congress, she played a central role in negotiating the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the Electoral Count Reform Act, the Respect for Marriage Act, and other key pieces of legislation. Senator Collins’ full biography can be found HERE.
The following Senators will serve on the Appropriations Committee in the 118th Congress: Senators Murray, Feinstein, Durbin, Reed, Tester, Shaheen, Merkley, Coons, Schatz, Baldwin, Murphy, Manchin, Van Hollen, Heinrich, Peters; Collins, McConnell, Murkowski, Graham, Moran, Hoeven, Boozman, Capito, Kennedy, Hyde-Smith, Hagerty, Britt, Rubio, Fischer.
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