Republican appropriators Tuesday evening approved a bill to cut spending for the Department of Transportation and reject many of President Joe Biden's budget proposals for the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The bill passed out of the full House Appropriations Committee by a vote of 34-27 and would fund the two departments and related agencies with a discretionary total of nearly $90.3 billion, more than $8.5 billion less than Biden's request.
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While it cuts DOT's budget by about $7.2 billion from last year's enacted number, it will fund HUD at $8 billion more than fiscal 2023, which is still about $2.4 billion below Biden's asking price.
The bill also blocks funding for many diversity, equity, and inclusion-related initiatives, including using federal funds to promote critical race theory.
"This bill is another example of the real progress we are making to reduce overall spending while funding our highest priorities," committee Chairwoman Kay Granger (R-TX) said at the outset of the markup. "Instead of giving the administration more grant funding to spend, this bill gets us back to funding core missions."
Congress is up against a Sept. 30 deadline to pass all 12 appropriations bills.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies subcommittee Chairman Tom Cole (R-OK) said the bill reduces spending by 25% compared to fiscal 2023 levels, as well as slashing 19 grant programs.
While the markup started with both Republicans and Democrats sharing bipartisan plaudits, the hearing quickly descended into chaos when Cole introduced an amendment blocking things like the "gay pride" flag from being flown at department and agency buildings, as well as not allowing the government to fund centers that push transgender medical procedures.
Democrats spent a long time slamming the amendment, even to the point of Reps. Mark Pocan (D-WI) and Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) calling their Republican colleagues "bigots" and "terrorists," respectively.
Granger recessed the committee on multiple occasions to consider Republican challenges to the rare Appropriations Committee invective, asking for the words to be stricken from the record.
Cole's amendment eventually passed 32-26.
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Republicans also blocked several Democratic attempts to include progressive wish list items in the bill, such as climate initiatives, funding for the California High Speed Rail project, and further DEI and critical race theory initiatives.
The bill will now be considered by the full House for passage but is likely to meet considerable issues in the Democratic-controlled Senate, which is working on its own versions of the appropriations bills.