U.S. Rep. Ed Case (D-HI) recently voted for a $1.5 trillion measure to fund the federal government for the current fiscal year.
President Joe Biden is expected to sign House Resolution 2471, or the Fiscal Year 2022 Consolidated Appropriations Act, into law now that the U.S. Senate voted to pass the measure after it was approved in the U.S. House. Case said on his website that the bill is expected to address a lot of priorities in Hawaii.
"The importance of the Indo-Pacific and Hawaii to our national defense is growing even more rapidly," Case posted on Facebook March 14.
The bill will address priorities, including over $700 million more for Red Hill Underground Fuel Storage Facility, $235 million for military construction projects throughout Hawaii and billions to fund the Pacific Deterrence Initiative, which will strengthen national security in the country. The bill also includes funding to help Ukraine in its battle against Russian military aggression.
“These funds are in addition to the $403 million in emergency funding we obtained in another bill we passed just weeks ago, bringing Congress’ total funding for all aspects of Red Hill in the current fiscal year alone to over $1.1 billion,” Case said, according to his website. “But billions more will be required to complete all aspects of the cleanup, stabilization, defueling and closing of Red Hill and the relocation of its fuel and build fuel storage capacity elsewhere, and I am already working with the Department of Defense on the Fiscal Year 2023 appropriations bill to assure that such funding is fully available.”