Congressman Andy Barr (KY-06) today voted in favor of H.R. 1625, the Consolidated Appropriations Act. The legislation includes an amendment offered by Congressman Barr and Congressman Evan Jenkins (WV-03) during the House Appropriations process to increase funding for High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA), including Madison County and 32 other counties in Kentucky. The final bill goes beyond the original request and increases funding for HIDTA to $280 million.
“Today, I joined my colleagues in the House to pass a funding bill that keeps our promise to rebuild our nation’s military after years of neglect during the Obama Administration, and that fully funds a well-deserved 2.4 percent pay increase for our troops,” said Congressman Barr. “Importantly for Kentucky, the bill funds the purchase of additional C-130J aircraft which will benefit our Air National Guard, and includes additional funding that I sought for equine assisted therapy to help our returning warriors recover from the psychological scars of combat.”
“Additionally, this legislation funds $4 billion – the largest investment to date – for treatment, prevention, and law enforcement programs to combat the opioid epidemic that has devastated families and communities in Kentucky. As a direct result of an amendment I offered with Congressman Evan Jenkins, the final bill includes $280 million for the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Program, a major increase in our efforts to fight drug trafficking in Eastern Kentucky and other areas ravaged by drug addiction and overdoses.”
“While this bill keeps many of the promises we have made to the American people and is necessary to improve our national security, it also critical that Congress do more to address the true cost drivers of our national debt and offset these investments in discretionary spending with long overdue reforms to our unsustainable mandatory programs.”