Young Supports Ukraine Aid and Government Funding Package

WASHINGTON – Last night, U.S. Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.) voted in favor of H.R. 2471, the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022, a package that strictly adheres to the Republican framework for appropriations – parity between defense and non-defense funding, preservation of all legacy riders, and no poison pills. The bill includes $14 billion in emergency aid for Ukraine, a nearly six percent boost in defense spending, a military pay raise, and funding for the federal government for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2022. The legislation passed the Senate 68-31 and now heads to the President’s desk to be signed into law.

“This legislation provides the Ukrainian people with urgently needed lethal aid and humanitarian assistance as they fight for their freedom,” said Senator Young. “The package prioritizes our national security by increasing defense spending by over five percent, provides robust funding for border security to address the crisis, and preserves important long-standing appropriations policies to protect life, including the Hyde Amendment.”

Senator Young-led priorities in the bill:

Extended Coverage of Telehealth Services for Seniors: The legislative package includes provisions reflective of the Telehealth Extension and Evaluation Act, bipartisan legislation introduced by Senators Young and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) to ensure seniors continue to benefit from important remote health care services. The legislation will allow the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to temporarily extend Medicare payments for a broad range of telehealth services. The bill also will commission studies on the impact of the pandemic telehealth flexibilities extended in this bill in order to better inform Congress’ work to make telehealth flexibilities permanent.

Israel Relations Normalization Act: The legislative package includes the Israel Relations Normalization Act, bipartisan legislation cosponsored by Senator Young. The bill builds upon the success of the Abraham Accords, the peace and normalization agreements between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco, by stating U.S. policy is to strengthen and expand these normalization agreements while requiring coordination throughout the Administration, specifically the Department of State (State), the Department of Defense, and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

Funding for the following programs Senator Young supports was also included:

o   A new Technology Directorate in the National Science Foundation and Regional Innovations Hubs, provisions that Senator Young is working to ensure become law through the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act

o   KidneyX, a public-private partnership to accelerate innovation in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of kidney diseases

o   Screening, surveillance, research, and awareness activities on congenital heart disease authorized by the Congenital Heart Futures Reauthorization Act

o   Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias research and the National Alzheimer’s Call Center

o   Comprehensive Opioid Recovery Centers, which integrate all aspects of opioid and substance use disorder treatment and recovery under one roof

o   Charter Schools Program, to help support the creation, replication, and expansion of high-quality charter schools

o   Title VI/Fulbright-Hays International Education and Foreign Language Studies programs under the Higher Education Act

o   Adult Education State Grant Program funding for literacy, numeracy, and digital education programs for adults without high school degrees

o   Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) program to ensure positive outcomes for children in child abuse and neglect cases

o   Victims of Child Abuse programs for Children’s Advocacy Centers that serve child victims and help law enforcement hold perpetrators accountable

o   STOP School Violence Act, to help schools implement proven, evidence-based programs and technologies that stop school violence before it happens

o   Peer Mentoring, Mental Health, and Wellness Pilot Programs authorized by the Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act

o   DOT’s Capital Investment Grants, a grant program that has helped Indiana secure hundreds of millions for the West Lake Corridor Project and South Shore Line Double Track Project

o   The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, a results-driven program that addresses the most serious issues threatening the wellbeing of the Great Lakes basin, including toxic substances, pollution, debris, and invasive species

o   Vital investments in the national defense, including:

• • Procurement of Hoosier-manufactured systems and equipment that will contribute to American security today, including Abrams tanks (Allison Transmission, Indianapolis), sonobuoys (Ultra, Columbia City), AMMPS Generators (Cummins, Columbus), High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles (AM General, Mishawaka), and MRE rations (Ameriqual, Evansville)
  • Development of technologies and capabilities that will support our military tomorrow, including research into Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (Purdue University and Saab, West Lafayette), advanced microelectronics (University of Notre Dame, South Bend), U.S. Navy hypersonics capabilities (Indiana Innovation Institute, Bloomington), continued development of the Army Future Vertical Lift program (Rolls-Royce, Indianapolis), and AI-supported intelligence exploitation tools (Lilt, Indianapolis)