Congress re-opened the federal government after briefly shutting it down Feb. 9 morning. The House and Senate passed and President Trump signed a two-year funding bill that ensures the government stays open for business and keeps federal employees working on behalf of the American people. 

However, lawmakers have until March 23 to come up with a detailed funding plan that sets line-by-line funding levels.

The bipartisan deal would provide long-overdue increases for both our military and non-defense agencies. Most federal agencies have been limping by on borrowed time for far too long due to harmful sequestration cuts. This budget will give agencies much-needed resources to invest in the taxpayer programs and services that the public expects and deserves. 

Here’s a recap of what’s included in the two-year budget deal: 

• The agreement fully eliminates the non-defense discretionary and defense discretionary sequestration cuts for two years. 
• It increases both defense and non-defense funding.  
• The non-defense discretionary funding will be $117 billion higher than the levels President Trump proposed in his 2018 budget proposal. 
• It provides $4 billion to rebuild and renovate VA hospitals and clinics. 
• It provides $2 billion for important research at NIH. 
• It provides $20 billion to improve infrastructure such as surface transportation, rural water and wastewater, clean and safe drinking water, rural broadband, and energy infrastructure. 
• It provides $5.8 billion for the bipartisan Child Care Development Block Grant program 
• It provides $6 billion in funding to fight against opioid and mental health epidemics. 
• It provides $4 billion for programs that make college affordable, including those that help police officers, teachers, and firefighters. 
• It provides $23.5 billion for the FEMA Disaster Relief Fund. 
• It provides $28 billion in Community Development Block Grants for housing, infrastructure repairs, economic revitalization, and other needs. 
• It provides two-year reauthorization for Community Health Centers with more than $7 billion in total funding. Community health centers serve about 27 million people across the country, many of whom are poor or lack insurance.  
• It provides $4.9 billion in Medicaid funds for Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands, and a 100% federal cost share for Medicaid while they recover from the hurricane disaster