Senator Reverend Warnock Outlines Fiscal Year 2024 Government Funding Priorities, Fights To Secure Investments in Expanded Health Care Access, Veterans, Housing Small Businesses, Workforce Development and Broadband Expansion

Senator Reverend Warnock has pushed Senate leadership to honor Georgia’s funding priorities in the Fiscal Year 2024 spending package through a series of over 250 letters

Following input from Georgians across the state, Senator Reverend Warnock has worked to ensure the annual government funding package includes key priorities for Georgia including expanding access to health care, investing in workforce development, developing rural broadband, supporting veterans and strengthening small businesses

Senator Reverend Warnock: “I’ll continue pushing in Congress to make sure Washington is making smart investments that will meet the needs of our state, including expanding broadband and health care access, fighting for our veterans, supporting our small businesses, and so much more”

Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA) outlined his priorities in the Fiscal Year 2024 government funding package through a series of over 250 letters sent to Senate leadership. The Senator is working to secure investments in the package for key Georgia priorities, including expanding access to health care, investing in workforce development, developing rural broadband, supporting veterans and strengthening Georgia’s small businesses. This is just one of many behind-the-scenes actions Senator Warnock is taking to ensure Georgia families’ and businesses’ critical priorities are strongly reflected in the upcoming funding package.

“I’m proud to fight every day to deliver for Georgia,” said Senator Reverend Warnock. “I’ll continue pushing in Congress to make sure Washington is making smart investments that will meet the needs of our state, including expanding broadband and health care access, fighting for our veterans, supporting our small businesses, and so much more. I’m going to keep pressuring Senate leadership to ensure these federal investments reflect the needs of Georgians, and get this government funding package done.”

See below key Fiscal Year 2024 funding priorities below:

Health Care

Maternal Health Care: Senator Warnock requested funding for programs that will improve maternal health outcomes, especially for Black, Latina, and Indigenous individuals, and those living in rural areas.
Primary Care Access: Senator Warnock requested robust funding for community health centers to increase access to cost-effective primary care that serves medically-underserved communities.
Pediatricians and Pediatric Specialists: Senator Warnock requested additional federal investments in the Children’s Hospitals Graduate Medical Education program to improve children’s access to health care and address pediatric specialty shortages
Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Senator Warnock, joined by Senator Ossoff, requested full funding for the CDC to ensure the nation’s health security.
Medicaid Expansion: Senator Warnock pushed for a budget provision urging the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to work with the 10 non-expansion states, including Georgia, and encourage them to take advantage of the incentives championed by the Senator in the American Rescue Plan to close the coverage gap. Additionally, the Senator requested Congress direct CMS to provide a report on the impact that lack of expanded coverage has on health outcomes and mortality rates in every state that has not expended Medicaid.

Housing

Legal Assistance to Prevent Evictions: Senator Warnock requested funding to expand eviction prevention activities and ensure Georgians can stay in their homes.
Community Development Block Grants: Senator Warnock pushed for strong federal funding for Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) to fund infrastructure, economic development projects, public facilities installation, community centers, housing rehabilitation, public services, clearance/acquisition, microenterprise assistance, code enforcement, and homeowner assistance, among other programs.
Support for Rural Homeownership: Senator Warnock requested strong funding for the Self-Help Homeownership Opportunity Program (SHOP) and Rural Capacity Building (RCB), two programs that support low-income homeownership, especially in rural areas.
Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS: Senator Warnock requested funding to adequately address the needs of low-income residents living with HIV/AIDS, as nearly half of these individuals require some form of housing-related assistance.

Economic Development

Financial Institutions in Underserved Communities: Senator Warnock pushed for federal funding Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) to address underserved communities.
Small Businesses and Entrepreneurs: Senator Warnock requested robust funding for the Small Business Administration’s Growth Accelerator Fund to support emerging small businesses and startups.
Microloan Program for Small Businesses: Senator Warnock requested funding for microloans distributed through the Small Business Administration to help small businesses start up and expand.
State Trade Expansion Program: Senator Warnock requested funding for the State Trade Expansion Program (STEP), which provides grants to increase the number of small businesses offering their products overseas.

Transportation/Infrastructure

School Bus Electrification: Senator Warnock requested additional funding for the Electric School Bus Program Funding.
Rail Workforce and Safety: Senator Warnock pushed for federal funding for the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) to fund rail research at universities, training programs for workers, and safety and other capital improvement projects along passenger rail lines and short line freight railroads.
Clean Drinking Water: Senator Warnock requested robust funding for Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) and the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) which protects public health and environmental quality.
Infrastructure Solutions: Senator Warnock supported the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) program to fund transformative infrastructure solutions that reduce congestion, increase safety, address freight bottlenecks, and expand access.

Agriculture

Rural Broadband Development: Senator Warnock, a champion of rural broadband, requested funding for the rural broadband loan and grant program.
1890 Land Grant Institutions Institution: Senator Warnock requested funding for creating the next generation of agricultural leaders through investing in 1890 land-grant universities, including Fort Valley State University, to boost research, extension, and scholarship funding.
Emergency Food Assistance: Senator Warnock pushed for funding for The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) to help food banks meet sustained high levels of demand while facing increased costs for purchasing, storing, and transporting food.
Farming Opportunities and Training Outreach Program: Senator Warnock, a champion of beginning and underserved farmers, requested funding for the Farming Opportunities and Training Outreach Program to provide training and education.

Education

Educational Resources for Low-income Students: Senator Warnock requested funding for the Federal TRIO Programs, which supports low-income, first-generation students grades 6-12 reach their higher education goals.
Pell Grants: Senator Warnock, a former pell grant recipient, requested an increase of funding to expand eligibility to students who have been previously excluded.
Historically Black Colleges and University (HBCUs): As a proud HBCU graduate, Senator Warnock requested funding for HBCU’s, a gateway to the middle class for many first-generation, low-income, and minority Americans.
Job Corps Centers: Senator Warnock, a champion of workforce development, requested funding for Job Corps centers to meet and sustain their full operational capacity, improve support for staff, and address the critical backlog of safety-related facility needs.

Defense/Veterans

C-130 J at Dobbins Air Reserve Base: Senator Warnock reiterated his support for the C-130J modernization program which will help bring the new aircraft to Air Force flying units the mission at Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Marietta.

Maintenance and Modernization of Military Facilities. Senator Warnock requested sufficient funding to ensure all Georgia military bases can maintain, modernize, and restore Department of Defense infrastructure so servicemembers have safe facilities to work in.

JROTC Stem Education: Senator Warnock, a high school JROTC participant, requested funding for stem training and education in the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (JROTC).

Educational Resources for Children of Servicemembers: Senator Warnock requested funding for school districts with high concentrations of military students and school districts that enroll children of military families who have severe disabilities.

Ending Veteran Homelessness: Senator Warnock pushed for strong funding to support the estimated 800 homeless Georgia veterans and 7% of Georgian veterans living in poverty to help find permanent affordable housing.

Rural Veterans: The son of a veteran, Senator Warnock requested funding for Department of Veteran Affairs programs that support rural veterans.

Democracy

Resources to Protect the Right to Vote: Senator Warnock requested that Congress direct the Attorney General to prioritize resources to enforce the civil provisions of the federal laws that protect the right to vote.
Support for State and Local Elections: Senator Warnock pushed for strong funding for the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) to improve election infrastructure, enhance cybersecurity, hire and train officials and poll workers.
Protection of Election Workers: Senator Warnock requested Congress to direct the Election Assistance Commission to take greater efforts to protect election workers.
Voting Access for Citizens with Limited English Proficiency: Senator Warnock requested Congress to direct the Election Assistance Commission to take greater efforts to promote language access.

Justice/Safety

Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) and Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program: Senator Warnock reiterated his support for strong funding for the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) and for the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program to increase public safety and support state and local law enforcement
Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program: Senator Warnock pushed for strong funding for the Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program (JMHCP) to improve the lives of people with mental illness who come into contact with in the criminal justice system
Programs to Combat Violent Crime: Senator Warnock requested funding to combat community-based violence intervention (CVI) programs to help state and local partners respond to the rise in violent crime and gun violence.
Efforts to Protect Civil Rights in Policing: Senator Warnock requested that Congress direct the Department of Justice to return to vigorous enforcement of constitutional policing, including the use of consent decrees.

Click here for more information on the investments secured by Senator Warnock in the Fiscal Year 2023 package.

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