On June 16, 2011, the House considered H.R. 2112: Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration and Related Agencies Appropriations. This bill represents a reduction in funding from the last fiscal year as well. H.R. 2112 contains significant cuts to important programs. WIC, a nutrition program for pregnant women, infants and children, is cut by $650 million, which means that up to 350,000 low-income women and children won't be able to participate in the program. The bill cuts the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) by 12%. This will impact food safety initiatives and make it difficult for the FDA to fully implement the Food Safety Act, which directs the FDA to implement a more comprehensive food safety system focused on stopping food contamination.
H.R. 2112 greatly reduces the budget for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which is responsible for implementing some key Wall Street reforms after the financial collapse. The bill cuts proposed funding by 44% making it very difficult for the Commission to effectively regulate the industry. I voted NO. H.R. 2112 passed and the entire vote is recorded below:
| YEA | NAY | PRESENT | NOT VOTING | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| REPUBLICAN | 217 |
19 |
0 |
3 |
| DEMOCRAT | 0 |
184 |
0 |
9 |
| TOTAL | 217 |
203 |
0 |
12 |
| MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION |
7 |
0 |
0 |
3 |