Murkowski Secures Investments for Alaska in Three FY25 Appropriations Bills

07.11.24

Murkowski Secures Investments for Alaska in Three FY25 Appropriations Bills

WASHINGTON-Today, U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, scored wins for Alaska in the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25) Appropriations Act; Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies FY25 Appropriations Act, and; Legislative Branch FY25 Appropriations Act. The bills were approved today in the Senate Appropriations Committee and will now advance to the Senate floor for consideration.

"We are on schedule to move the twelve appropriations bills through the full committee. Today, we passed by unanimous consent three spending bills which represent a significant investment towards supporting our military and veterans, as well as support for Alaska's public safety and food security," said Senator Murkowski. "I will continue to use my senior status as a Senate appropriator to shepherd Alaskans' priorities through Congress."

Military Construction, Veterans Affairs FY25 Highlights for Alaska

Senator Murkowski secured $470.9 million in funding for Alaska in the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies FY25 Appropriations Act. This is significant investments by the Pentagon in Alaska in recognition of Alaska's critical role in defense of our country. Her advocacy resulted in wins for infrastructure, training and improving quality of lie for those who serve. The Senator fought for $126 million in programmatic spending that will go towards Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson's (JBER) Joint Integrated Test and Training Center. Other programmatic wins for Alaska's military include $67 million for JBER's National Guard Readiness Center, as well as $120 million for family housing construction on JBER.

Senator Murkowski is proud of Alaska's reputation as having more veterans per capita than any other state in the nation and always seeks opportunities to repay the debt we owe our veterans that we can never fully meet. In the face of a difficult fiscal year, she secured increases in funding for programs that have a high impact on veterans living in Alaska. Within the bill passed by the Committee, funding for veterans' mental health programs, telehealth programs, women veterans care, and the VA's Office of Rural Health was protected or increased compared to the previous fiscal year.

She fought for increases in smaller programs that directly impact veteran's facilities in Alaska. She secured a $9 million increase in funding for construction grants of state extended care facilities, which she aims to direct towards the Palmer Pioneer Home through report language that requires the VA to take into consideration factors specifically impacting the extended care facility. She also fought and won additional funding for grants for construction of veterans' cemeteries. She secured report language directing the VA to enhance its efforts to reach veterans who aren't connect to a VA facility via road to ensure that veterans all over Alaska are able to learn what care and benefits they are eligible for.

Below are all of the Alaska specific Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) requests funded in the legislation:

• Eielson: $6.7 million for Permanent Dormitory Planning and Design. This project would complete the planning and design process for new dormitory buildings to house unaccompanied airmen at Eielson.
• Eielson: $5.8 million for Joint Mobility Center Planning and Design. This project would increase deployment capacity and increase mission productivity of Eielson's F-35 program.
• Fort Wainwright: $7.7 million for Dining Facility Planning and Design. The current dining facility is outdated and undersized. This project would create new dining facilities to better serve the 11^th Airborne Division at Fort Wainwright.
• JBER: $15.6 million for Precision Guided Munitions Complex Planning and Design. This project would improve the readiness of Air Force units stationed at JBER.
• JBER: $10.8 million for Tactical Equipment Maintenance Facility Planning and Design. This project would create new maintenance facilities for the 11th Airborne Division units at JBER.

Agriculture FY25 Highlights for Alaska

Senator Murkowski delivered a number of critical programmatic wins in the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies FY25 Appropriations Act. She secured $2 million out of the $8 million appropriated for this program to be made available for Indian Tribes for the repair or replacement of bulk fuel storage tanks as a part of the Senator's larger strategy to secure funding to address the projected $1.5 billion cost of deferred maintenance for bulk fuel in Rural Alaska.

Senator Murkowski also secured significant increases for USDA RD's Rental Assistance Program to and prioritized the Rural Housing Assistance Grants, which received $40 million. These programs play a crucial role in supporting low-income residents in Alaska by providing affordable housing options in rural areas, ensuring that more residents have access to safe, stable housing, which is essential for the overall well-being and economic development of rural communities.

Senator Murkowski was also able to protect funding for the Micro-Grants for Food Security program, which she created through the 2018 Farm Bill. This program provides grants of up to $5,000 to individuals and up to $10,000 to non-profits, schools, tribes, and communities to grow more healthy food locally. The program is administered through the Alaska Division of Agriculture.

Below are all of the Alaska specific Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) requests funded in the legislation:

• Statewide: $750,000 to the Alaska Federation of Natives to expand veterinarian care to rural Alaska, specifically to spay and neuter animals to reduce animal bites and improve sanitation. The program will serve 80 communities.
• Bethel: $605,000 to the Bethel Community Services Foundation for construction a permanent food bank and pantry for the community of Bethel.
• Wrangell: $2.43 million to the City and Borough of Wrangell for the Wrangell Public Safety Building and Emergency Operations Center.
• Ketchikan: $490,000 to the Ketchikan Gateway Borough for the South Tongass Fire Department to replace damaged equipment. Earlier this year, the station lost two ambulances, engines, and a support vehicle in a fire.
• Kenai: $3 million for the Kenai Peninsula Borough to build out communications infrastructure for cellular and radio service.
• Kenai: $1.99 million to the Kenai Peninsula Borough for building maintenance and repairs in emergency service stations.
• Upper Susitna: $1.5 million to construct a new Upper Susitna Food Pantry. The current facility is not adequate for the community's needs and has no running water.
• Statewide: $4.2 million to the Alaska Municipal League to purchase heavy equipment and transfer ownership to disadvantaged communities across Alaska.
• Houston: $1.95 million to the City of Houston to design and build a shared municipal facility that will house fire department and road maintenance equipment and supplies.

Legislative Branch FY25 Highlights for Alaska

Senator Murkowski inserted report language in the Legislative Branch FY25 Appropriations Act that encourages the Senate Dining Room and food-service facilities in the Capitol to source domestic seafood products, including wild-caught salmon. Alaska-caught seafood should be available for those who visit the capitol to enjoy and to appreciate that when it comes to seafood, there's no substitute for Alaskan seafood.

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