December 19, 2019

Manchin Secures Funding For West Virginia Priorities In FY 2020 Appropriations Package

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today secured funding for West Virginia priorities in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Appropriations package.

“One of my greatest responsibilities as a Senator is advocating for West Virginia through my position on the Appropriations Committee. The funding secured for West Virginia in the Appropriations package makes me proud of the work we have accomplished in the Senate this year. We have secured $3.8 billion to combat the opioid epidemic, $555 million to expand broadband in rural areas like West Virginia, $181.5 million to address youth homelessness, and I am so proud to say that we secured pensions for 92,000 coal miners and healthcare for 13,000 coal miners and their families in this package. All of these wins are wonderful for West Virginia and I look forward to continuing to fight to ensure that our state receives the funding and resources we need to thrive and succeed,” said Senator Manchin.

Senator Manchin’s top West Virginia priorities secured in the Appropriations package:

  • Coal Miner’s Healthcare and Pensions: Secures the pensions and healthcare for nearly 100,000 coal miners and their families.
  • Opioids ($3.8B): Billions of dollars in dedicated funding across the government to combat opioids, including $518 million through the Dept. of Justice, $402 million through the VA, and $25 million at HUD.
  • Clean Drinking Water ($2.8B): Supports nearly $2.8 billion in appropriations toward water infrastructure, as well as $43 million directed toward remediation of PFAS chemicals, which have impacted several cities in WV.
  • Border Wall ($1.375B): Maintains funding for the construction of the wall along the southern border.
  • Rural Broadband ($570M): Provides funding to the USDA for the ReConnect program, as well as $5 million in  new broadband funding from the Appalachian Regional Commission for distressed counties in North and North Central Appalachia, making 10 more counties eligible for ARC broadband funding in addition to 7 counties in southern WV previously eligible for funding for Central Appalachia.
  • Youth Homelessness ($181.5M): Includes $80 million specifically to stop youth homelessness through HUD and $101.5 million through McKinney-Vento grants through DOE.
  • NETL ($161M): Includes $61 million for Coal R&D, $50 million for Infrastructure, and $23 million for the Rare Earth Element (REE) program. It also prioritizes the construction of a supercomputer located in Morgantown.
  • Assistance to Coal Communities ($83M): Provides funding for the ARC Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization (POWER) and EDA Assistance to Coal Communities (ACC) programs. WV is the largest per capita recipient of EDA funds each year and has received $46.372 million in POWER Grants over the past four years.
  • WV Bridges ($50M): Provides funding to repair bridges in West Virginia. 19% of West Virginia’s 1,247 bridges are considered structurally deficient, the second highest total in the U.S.
  • Appalachian Storage Hub ($33M): Encourages DOE to study the economic & national security benefits of natural gas liquids storage & includes funding for the Title XVII Innovative Technologies Loan Program.
  • Corridor H ($15M): For the first time since 2012, the bill includes dedicated funding for the Appalachian Development Highway System (ADHS), which includes Corridor H, also known as U.S. Route 48, which connects I-79 in Weston to I-81 in Strasburg, VA.
  • Summit Point ($9M): Funds the expansion of the CBP Advanced Training Facility in Harpers Ferry.
  • Agricultural & Forestry Research ($5.4M): Funding for USDA research and education activities in the state, including the Wood Education Resource Center in Princeton, and new funding to establish a Pollinator Recovery and Education Center in Central Appalachia.
  • Camp Dawson ($3M): Reversed a House rescission cut to a Navy program that would have prevented these funds from setting up the WV National Guard’s new Cyber Testing & Training Environment.
  • Secure Rural Schools ($1.7M): Provides funding over the next two years to 14 counties in WV with significant federal lands through a 2-year extension to the Secure Rural Schools program.
  • Monongahela National Forest ($750k): Funding through the Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) for Forest Service Land Acquisition within the Monongahela National Forest. As Ranking Member on the Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee, Senator Manchin led a successful effort earlier this year to permanently authorize LWCF.
  • Amtrak Ticket Agents: Following the removal of the last ticket agent in West Virginia last year, this bill directs Amtrak to re-staff stations around the country, restoring the ticket agent in Charleston.
  • Federal Workforce: Level or increased funding for federal agencies like NASA IV&V, Bureau of Fiscal Service, CBP Advanced Training Center, FBI CJIS, National Conservation Training Center, Coast Guard, NOAA, & others across the state, as well as a 3.1% pay raise for the more than 21,000 federal employees in West Virginia.  

Full list of Senator Manchin’s West Virginia priorities included in the FY 2020 Appropriations package can be viewed here.