Congressman Fred Upton, R-St. Joseph, released the following statement upon passage of the Consolidated Appropriations Act.

“I’m pleased we were able to come together in a bipartisan manner to get this done,” said Upton. “While never perfect, at the end of the day this agreement is a win for jobs and our economy here in Southwest Michigan and across the country. We were able to advance common-sense solutions on a host of fronts; including securing a $2 billion infusion for the National Institutes of Health which adds momentum to our 21^st Century Cures initiative, and getting the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative fully funded – which marks a major victory for our region. I look forward to 2016 when, under Speaker Paul Ryan’s leadership, we will return to a more customary, open appropriations process that gets our fiscal house in order.”

BACKGROUND: The omnibus advances several priorities that will benefit Southwest Michigan families and businesses including increased investments in Alzheimer’s research, repealing Country of Origin (COOL) requirements, repealing the government’s 40-year-old ban on exporting crude oil, and increasing military spending and tightening security requirements under the nation’s Visa Waiver Program.