Statement on the 2018 Omnibus Appropriations Act

Washington, D.C. – Congresswoman Madeleine Z. Bordallo today issued the following statement on the enactment of the FY2018 Omnibus Appropriations Act. The bill funds federal government operations for the remainder of the fiscal year, which ends on September 30, 2018.

Congresswoman Bordallo worked successfully with her colleagues from the U.S. territories and House Appropriations Committee to reject the Trump Administration’s proposed cuts to federal programs important to Guam. The recently signed omnibus bill actually increases federal funding for key priorities including:

• $1.216 million increase in discretionary federal assistance grants to the territories over last year, from the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Office of Insular Affairs. President Trump’s budget requested just $14.671 million, but Congress ultimately provided $18.0 million for fiscal year 2018 in this omnibus law. In fiscal year 2017, Congress provided $16.784 million.

• $1 million increase in discretionary federal reimbursement for Compact impact over last year, for a total of $4.0 million in discretionary Compact impact grants for fiscal year 2018. This $4 million is in addition to the $30 million in mandatory Compact impact reimbursement that Guam splits with Hawai’i, the CNMI, and American Samoa each year. President Trump’s budget proposed to eliminate discretionary Compact impact reimbursement to GovGuam for fiscal year 2018. In fiscal year 2017, Congress provided $3.0 million for discretionary Compact impact.

• $950,000 increase in federal funding for the Office of Insular Affairs’ Coral Reef Initiative over last year, which provides grants to help protect Guam’s coral reefs. President Trump’s budget requested just $946,000, but Congress provided $2.2 million for fiscal year 2018 under the omnibus law. Congress provided $1.25 million in fiscal year 2017.

• Maintains level funding at $3.5 million for the Office of Insular Affairs’ program to combat the invasive brown tree snake on Guam. This grant funding builds upon Congresswoman Bordallo’s Brown Tree Snake Control and Eradication Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-38)

“This is not a perfect bill, but FY18 omnibus appropriations act makes important investments for our working families and communities, and it provides a level of certainty for our federal agencies and employees for the remainder of the fiscal year.

“Importantly for Guam, the law rejects devastating cuts proposed in the President’s budget for key programs that benefit Guam. In fact, Congress approved increased funding for several programs, including discretionary Compact impact, the Coral Reef Initiative, and technical assistance provided through the Office of Insular Affairs.

“With GovGuam’s current budgetary crisis, we need federal support now more than ever. I continue working in Congress to bring federal resources to Guam to improve the lives of all our residents. The people of Guam are Americans, and we deserve nothing less than equal, full support from our federal government.”