Young Supports Critical Defense and Health Programs in Government Funding Package

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.) voted in favor of a government funding package that includes a pay raise for American servicemembers, an increase for key national security priorities, preservation of all legacy policy riders including the pro-life Hyde Amendment, and support for critical health programs. The legislation passed the Senate 74 to 24. 

The legislative package includes funding for the Defense; State & Foreign Operations; Homeland Security; Legislative Branch; Financial Services and General Government; and Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies appropriations bills through the end of Fiscal Year 2024. 

Senator Young’s priorities included in the bill:

• Important pro-life provisions that prohibit federal funding from being used for abortions.
• A 5.2% pay raise for servicemembers.
• $64 billion for capabilities relevant to the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) to deter aggression from China and North Korea.
• Support for Indiana’s key role in national defense, including Army, Air Force, and Navy aircraft procurement and research and development (Rolls-Royce, Indianapolis) and future ground combat vehicles for the future vehicles of the U.S. Army (Cummins, Columbus and Allison Transmission, Indianapolis).
• Continued funding for research and development of hypersonics capabilities (Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division), the enhanced development of related workforces (University of Notre Dame), and improvements to the manufacturing process for energetics materials (Purdue University).
• Continued funding for acquisition of a Coast Guard icebreaker for the Great Lakes, a priority for Indiana’s economy. Senator Young has long supported funding for greater icebreaking capacity to ensure navigation on the Great Lakes during the winter months, including the Great Lakes Winter Commerce Act, which was signed into law in 2022.
• Continued funding for the Kidney X Innovation Accelerator, which continues the public-private partnership to accelerate innovation in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of kidney diseases.
• Continued funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s congenital heart defects program, which will assist in the screening, surveillance, research, and awareness activities on congenital heart disease authorized by the Congenital Heart Futures Reauthorization Act, which Senator Young helped lead.
• Continued funding for the Charter School Program with increased flexibility added to the program. This funding will help support the creation, replication, and expansion of high-quality charter schools.
• Continued funding for the Adult Education State Grant Program, which will help to improve literacy, numeracy, and digital education programs for adults without high school degrees.
• An increase in the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Organ Transplantation funding for system modernization. This funding will support Senator Young’s bipartisan Securing the U.S. OPTN Act, to create an independent OPTN Board and award multiple contracts for the operation of the nation’s organ donation and transplant system.