Rep. Rush Votes to Approve House Spending Bill, Secures Robust Funding for Community Health Centers, National Flood Insurance Program

WASHINGTON, Sept. 19 -- Rep. Bobby Rush, D-Illinois, issued the following news release:

Today, U.S. Representative Bobby L. Rush (D-Ill.) voted to approve the Continuing Appropriations Act of 2020 and the Health Extenders Act of 2019, which will, among other things, extend the Community Health Centers Fund and the National Flood Insurance Program through Nov. 21, 2019. The bill passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 301-to-123.

"The House of Representatives has passed 10 appropriations bills. However, the Senate appropriations process is much further behind and a continuing resolution is needed in order to avoid another costly government shutdown.

"This continuing resolution also provides for the extension of many important programs, including two critically important funding sources to my district. First, this bill will extend funding for Community Health Centers which are vital to my neighbors on the South Side of Chicago and provide a plethora of healthcare and community services to vulnerable members in my community.

"Secondly, with rising water levels in Lake Michigan and given that my district lays atop a floodplain, a lapse in funding to the National Flood Insurance Program could have been financially catastrophic to my constituents. However, I am pleased that this Democratically-controlled House was able to avoid that disastrous outcome.

"I sincerely hope that my colleagues in the Senate can get their act together because this funding is only temporary, and the American people cannot afford another pointless shutdown come November."

The text of the legislation is available here (https://appropriations.house.gov/sites/democrats.appropriations.house.gov/files/documents/H.R.%204378.pdf). A section-by-section summary of the legislation is available here (https://appropriations.house.gov/sites/democrats.appropriations.house.gov/files/documents/H.R.%204378%20Summary.pdf).