Funding bill now heads to the House of Representatives
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ted Budd (R-N.C.) released the following statement after the Senate voted 60-40 to advance a funding measure through January 30, 2026, that will end the government shutdown as well as pass three appropriations bills including, Military Construction and Veterans Affairs appropriations, Agriculture appropriations, and Legislative Branch appropriations. Now, the spending package is headed back to the House of Representatives before going to the President’s desk for his signature.
“After more than forty days, eight Senate Democrats agreed to come to the table and work in a bipartisan manner to end the longest shutdown in American history. I want to thank the thousands of air traffic controllers, border patrol agents, federal law enforcement, and other federal employees who showed up to work and kept our country running, even after missing multiple paychecks. As we finally take this long-awaited step toward re-opening the government, I urge my colleagues in the House of Representatives to put the best interests of the American people first and quickly get this bill on the President’s desk so we can finally end the Schumer Shutdown,” said Senator Budd.
BACKGROUND
The final Senate funding package includes several Budd-led and supported measures, including provisions that:
- Provide $680 million in Military Construction projects across North Carolina’s military installations, including:
- F-35 Aircraft Sustainment Center at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point
- Combat Arms Training and Maintenance Complex at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base
- Special Operations Forces Mission Command Center at Fort Bragg
- Clarify intent for $709 million provided for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Opioid Prevention and Treatment Programs to ensure certainty and accountability. This provision was an amendment that Senator Budd and Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) led.
- Provide the Food and Drug Administration with the resources and new authorities to crack down on the illegal importation, distribution, and sale of e-cigarettes from China and other countries.
- Successfully close the hemp loophole, preventing the sale of dangerous intoxicants like Delta-8 from being sold in unregulated retail stores and abused, while protecting the use of non-intoxicating CBD and hemp derivatives.
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