WASHINGTON, July 22 -- Rep. Steve Womack, R-Arkansas, ranking Republican member of the House Budget Committee, issued the following budget digest: The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2019 (BBA 2019) established the topline, base discretionary spending level for the appropriations bills for fiscal year (FY) 2020 and FY 2021. Commonly referred to as the 302(a) allocation, the caps-constrained appropriations spending level for FY 2021 is $1.298 trillion. Earlier this month, the Appropriations Committee r  more

WASHINGTON, July 24 -- Rep. Rick Crawford, R-Arkansas, issued the following news release: This week, Congressman Crawford introduced three bills to strengthen rural America and sustain our agriculture producers during the COVID-19 crisis and beyond. H.R. 7679, increases the authorized amount of the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) and indexes the amount to inflation, allowing it to change, as necessary, from year to year. The CCC has been the primary resource for the U.S. Department of Agric  more

WASHINGTON, July 23 -- Rep. French Hill, R-Arkansas, issued the following op-ed, published in Arkansas Wildlife Weekly Newsletter: Ahead of the passage of the Great American Outdoors Act, Rep. French Hill (AR-02), a member of the bipartisan Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus and avid outdoorsman, shared his support for the bill in the July 22nd Arkansas Wildlife Weekly Newsletter. Rep. Hill asserted that the Great American Outdoors Act will help preserve outdoor recreation, which is a beloved pa  more

WASHINGTON, July 23 -- Rep. French Hill, R-Arkansas, issued the following statement on National Defense Authorization Act: The U.S. House of Representatives passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2021, by a bipartisan vote of 295-125. "Congress must ensure that we are effectively utilizing hardworking taxpayer dollars for our national defense priorities, which include honoring our commitment to the men and women in uniform who are making our country a safer place   more

WASHINGTON, July 25 -- Rep. French Hill, R-Arkansas, issued the following news release: Rep. French Hill (AR-02) introduced the Helping Educators with Learning Preparation (HELP) Act. This legislation would assist elementary, middle, and high school students safely and successfully transition to socially distanced and in-classroom instruction by creating a grant program to provide state and local school entities with the resources that they need going into the fall. "As we head into the fall,  more

WASHINGTON, July 25 -- Rep. French Hill, R-Arkansas, issued the following statement after rejecting House Democrats' latest spending bill (H.R. 7608): "Twelve months ago House Republicans negotiated in good faith a two-year bipartisan budget, and today, House Democrats led by Speaker Pelosi ripped up that agreement in favor of their big-government, big-spending wish list to prioritize to their extreme policy agenda - such as underfunding every one of the Justice Department's federal law enforce  more

WASHINGTON, July 21 -- Rep. Steve Womack, R-Arkansas, ranking Republican member of the House Budget Committee, issued the following statement on the confirmation of Russell T. Vought to serve as the director of the Office of Management and Budget: "The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is a key part of our nation's fiscal and economic decision-making, and it's important that the agency is equipped to work at full capacity. "I'm pleased to see Russ Vought - a tireless advocate for responsi  more

WASHINGTON, July 22 -- Rep. Steve Womack, R-Arkansas, issued the following news release: Congressman Steve Womack (AR-3) released the following statement after the House passed H.R. 6395, the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2021. The legislation, which includes several Womack-supported provisions, authorizes $740.5 billion for national defense activities, including resources to equip our troops, support military families, enhance defense cap  more

WASHINGTON, July 23 -- Rep. Steve Womack, R-Arkansas, issued the following news release: U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross announced that the Department's Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding $3.2 million in CARES Act Recovery Assistance grants to eight EDA Economic Development District organizations across Arkansas to update economic development plans and fortify programs to assist communities in responding to the coronavirus pandemic. "The Trump Administration is eager   more

WASHINGTON, July 21 -- Rep. Steve Womack, R-Arkansas, issued the following news release: Ft. Smith Airport has been selected as one of five possible sites to host F-35 planes, as well as the Republic of Singapore's F-16 squadron. Congressman Womack and the Arkansas delegation have long advocated for Ft. Smith's inclusion in this important economic development and national security initiative. On July 6, 2020, Secretary of the Air Force Barbara Barrett signed a memorandum to establish a permane  more

WASHINGTON, July 24 -- Sen. John Boozman, R-Arkansas, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator John Boozman (R-AR) supported the Senate-passed Fiscal Year 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), legislation that invests in the military, ensures servicemembers have the tools and resources they need to successfully carry-out their missions and strengthens Arkansas's role in national defense. "At a time of increasing risks and dangerous challenges to global security, the United Sta  more

WASHINGTON, July 22 -- Sen. John Boozman, R-Arkansas, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator John Boozman (R-AR) continued his efforts to make the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) more flexible by joining a bipartisan effort to streamline forgiveness of the program's smaller loans. Boozman cosponsored the Paycheck Protection Small Business Forgiveness Act, introduced by Sens. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and Bob Menendez (D-NJ). The bill would make it easier for small businesses to get PPP lo  more

WASHINGTON, July 25 -- Sen. John Boozman, R-Arkansas, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator John Boozman (R-AR) recognized the service of Korean War veteran Clement (Clem) Kordsmeier in 'Salute to Veterans,' a series recognizing the military service of Arkansans. Kordsmeier was born in Morrilton, Arkansas in 1931. He was raised on his family's farm with his ten brothers and sisters. By 1952, Kordsmeier had received two draft deferments while helping his dad on the farm. This prompted  more

WASHINGTON, July 21 -- Sen. John Boozman, R-Arkansas, issued the following weekly column: This isn't just a big city problem. That was the message Dr. Nate Smith, Arkansas's Secretary of Health, sought to impart when recently answering a reporter's question about the alarming rise of recent positive COVID-19 diagnoses in rural Arkansas. When the crisis began, our nation's largest city was our hotspot. As the situation in New York City quieted down, the attention turned to other large cities s  more

WASHINGTON, July 25 -- Sen. John Boozman, R-Arkansas, issued the following weekly column: Over the last few weeks, Congress has been working on the annual legislation that helps ensure our men and women in uniform have the tools and resources they need to fulfill their crucial mission to protect and defend the United States, our allies and interests. One of the key ways the federal government meets its constitutional duty to "provide for the common defense" is through the passage and implement  more

WASHINGTON, July 23 -- Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Arkansas, issued the following news release: Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) introduced the Saving American History Act of 2020, a bill that would prohibit the use of federal funds to teach the 1619 Project by K-12 schools or school districts. Schools that teach the 1619 Project would also be ineligible for federal professional-development grants. Under the bill, the Secretaries of Education, Health and Human Services, and Agriculture would be required  more

WASHINGTON, July 21 -- Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Arkansas, issued the following news release: Ft. Smith Airport has been selected as one of five possible sites to host F-35 planes as well as the Republic of Singapore's F-16 squadron. Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) has long advocated for Ft. Smith's inclusion in this important economic development and national security initiative, and other Arkansas officials have pledged their support of the city and state's efforts to compete for the mission. On Ju  more