July 18, 2025

Weekly Update

Comment from the Capitol

In this week’s edition of Comment from the Capitol, I explain how the House calendar was disrupted due to uproar over the Administration’s handling of files related to Jeffrey Epstein’s horrific crimes. Plus, I share the progress we’ve made on the appropriations front.

Listen HERE.

Appropriations Update

It’s been an eventful week for me and my colleagues on the House Appropriations Committee as we continued to markup bills for the next fiscal year and advocate for their passage. Here’s what happened this week.

Strengthening Transportation and Housing

This week, the House Appropriations Committee met to consider my Fiscal Year 2026 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies bill. As subcommittee chair, I spearheaded the drafting of this bill and am proud of the final product.

The bill right sizes funding levels to support the transportation and housing programs that benefit Americans most and use taxpayer dollars as efficiently as possible.

Among its many impactful provisions, the bill reduces discretionary spending by nearly 5 percent while also…

• Increasing funding for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) by $2.307 billion over FY25 enacted levels, which will keep our skies safe and help build a world-class air traffic control system.
• Providing the FAA with resources to hire 2,500 new air traffic controllers and replace FAA’s aged telecommunication infrastructure.
• Rebuilding America with $3.8 billion above FY25 for highways, rail, airports, and maritime infrastructure.
• Providing funds to address the nation’s truck parking shortage.
• Empowering HUD to refocus housing assistance to promote self-sufficiency while maintaining support for America’s most vulnerable—including the elderly and disabled.
• Promoting defense readiness capabilities by funding the U.S. Merchant Marines, shipyards, the strategic sealift programs, including the Cable Security Program, the Maritime Security Program, and the Tanker Security Program.
• Supporting America’s vehicle and aircraft manufacturers to ensure global leadership and to counter China’s malign influence.
• Including $97.6 million in Community Project Funding for 11 projects in the Third District.

During the markup, Committee Republicans refused amendments offered by the Democrats that would have…

• Continued wasting taxpayer dollars on California’s high-speed rail project, where costs have skyrocketed and timelines have repeatedly been extended.
• Used taxpayer funds to enforce mask mandates.
• Allowed taxpayer money to be used to support cities, counties, and states that deliberately obstruct federal immigration enforcement and jeopardize public safety.
• Enforced overburdensome regulations and unnecessary red tape on the trucking industry.
• Blocked transferring unobligated funds previously appropriated by Congress.

The Appropriations Committee favorably reported the bill to the full House by a vote of 28-35. It is my hope that the bill’s next stop will be the House floor, where the entire chamber will have the opportunity to vote on it.

Read my full statement and the bill summary HERE.

Supporting Peace Through Strength

As I’ve consistently emphasized, Congress has a responsibility to annually appropriate taxpayer dollars, and this week, the House fulfilled that duty by passing the FY 2026 Defense Appropriations Bill.

Combined with the recently passed One Big Beautiful Bill, this legislation brings the total defense budget for FY26 to $1 trillion—a funding level that must be increased in the coming years to protect our national security.

The FY26 bill improves the lives of those who voluntarily raise their right hand to serve, counters drug trafficking at our borders, and ensures we continue to possess the most advanced weaponry and equipment in the world to win future conflicts.

Read my full statement on the bill’s passage and the bill summary HERE.

On the House Floor…

House Republicans designated this week, as "Crypto Week," focusing on legislation to regulate digital assets and promote innovation in the cryptocurrency space. While some Republicans attempted to derail the vote on these bills, as well as the defense appropriations bill, by stalling the procedural vote needed to begin debate, the GOP Conference ultimately succeeded in passing the following legislation:

• The Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act, which I proudly cosponsored, prevents the creation of a government-run digital dollar, protecting Americans’ financial privacy and freedom.
• The CLARITY Act provides clear regulatory lanes for the SEC and CFTC, protecting consumers, closing regulatory gaps, and encouraging innovation right here at home.
• The GENIUS Act provides regulatory certainty for payment stablecoins, protecting consumers and ensuring the U.S. dollar remains the reserve currency of the world.

In addition to the “Crypto Week” legislation, the House voted on H.R. 4, the Rescissions Act of 2025, which was returned by the Senate with minor changes. As I did when the bill was first brought to the House floor, I voted in favor, albeit with some reservations. While I firmly believe Congress must maintain its constitutional authority over appropriations, I ultimately supported the bill to advance my shared goal with the Administration to use taxpayer dollars responsibly and address the national deficit and debt.

Photo Highlights

I met with members of the Boys and Girls Club in Rogers and heard firsthand how the Club has positively impacted the lives of these young people. Providing safe and supportive environments for youth in our communities remains important, and it’s something I’m continually working to achieve.

During a meeting with Freedom Flight Works CEO Austin Blue, we discussed the future of long-range logistics in contested operational environments. Freedom Flight Works’ technology builds upon previous work by the Army and Air Force to deliver necessary and critical cargo to locations where traditional delivery methods are not feasible.

I spoke with Ukrainian Parliament Member Oleksandr “Sasha” Ustinova to discuss the current situation on the frontlines of the Ukraine-Russia war. Our conversation covered weapons supply agreements between the Trump Administration and NATO, as well as the urgent need for air defense and artillery ammunition to protect innocent civilians. We also addressed the importance of imposing additional sanctions against Russia to end the war and inflict economic pain against the Russian war machine.

I caught up with Jeff Monken, head football coach at the United States Military Academy, while he was on Capitol Hill. We spoke about needed reforms in college athletics following the House v. NCAA decision, which affirmed student-athletes’ rights to benefit from their name, image, and likeness (NIL).

I met with former Representative Marc Molinaro who has been nominated to be the next administrator of the Federal Transit Administration. We discussed the need for increased investment into public transit and how we can partner together to ensure our public transportation systems receive the adequate funding they need to run well.

In a meeting with Sang H. Yi, Acting Administration of the Maritime Administration (MARAD), I spoke about the role MARAD has in supporting port infrastructure development, shipping, and national security, as well as educating future mariners and maritime leaders by operating the Federal U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA).

Have a great weekend ahead, and I hope to see you around! Be sure to check out my website, X, and Instagram pages in the meantime.

From the front...

Congressman Steve Womack
Arkansas Third District