WASHINGTON — Congress approved a short-term spending bill to once again avert a government shutdown, but members of Hawaii’s Congressional delegation are reminding their colleagues that critical disaster funding remains up in the air.

What You Need To Know

  • A stopgap spending measure, the passage of which which House Speaker Mike Johnson secured with the help of Democrats, will fund the government until Dec. 20
  • Deliberations on the next spending bill, set to begin when Congress returns in November, are expected to be intense and will surely include further demands to replenish depleted disaster response funding
  • Schatz noted that in the 13 months since wildfires devastated Maui, other major disasters have hit Texas, Vermont, New Mexico, California and 15 other states
  • On Tuesday, Rep. Jill Tokuda, D-Hawaii, said during weekly "Maui Minute" address on the House floor that the failure to include disaster relief funding in the spending measure was "another missed opportunity" that will hurt those affected by disaster

The spending measure, which House Speaker Mike Johnson secured with the help of Democrats, will fund the government until Dec. 20. The Senate quickly passed the measure, setting up expected final approval by Pres. Joe Biden.

Deliberations on the next spending bill, set to begin when Congress returns in November, are expected to be intense and will surely include further demands to replenish depleted disaster response funding.

“Make no mistake, our work is not over,” Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, said on the Senate floor on Wednesday. “When we return in November, passing disaster aid has to be the top priority of the United States Congress. There is no excuse not to do this. This is an American priority, and we cannot close up shop for this Congress leaving all these Americans behind.”

Schatz noted that in the 13 months since wildfires devastated Maui, other major disasters have hit Texas, Vermont, New Mexico, California and 15 other states. Echoing a call he and fellow Hawaii Congress members have repeated for months, Schatz said Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery funding was essential to help those impacted by major disasters recover and rebuild.

“They’re waiting for help, and the federal government has not come to their aid yet,” Schatz said. “They’ve lost loved ones. They’ve lost homes. They’ve lost businesses. They’ve lost livelihoods. And all they want is help and a little bit of hope to get their lives back to something close to normal. What are we doing as a Congress if we can’t even deliver help to our fellow Americans when disaster strikes?"

On Tuesday, Rep. Jill Tokuda, D-Hawaii, said during weekly “Maui Minute” address on the House floor that the failure to include disaster relief funding in the spending measure was “another missed opportunity” that will hurt those affected by disaster.

“Just last week, (Rep. Douglas LaMalfa, R-Calif.) and I led a bipartisan coalition of members, all representing disaster affected communities, in calling for Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery funding and the Disaster Tax Relief Act to be included in government spending legislation,” Tokuda said. “Instead, Congress will leave town this week with little to offer."

“Any year-end government spending package must include disaster recovery funding,” she continued. “We cannot delay further, not when far too many communities like Maui are still waiting and hurting. We owe it to them and all our disaster-stricken communities to get this done, and I will not stop fighting until we deliver the support they so desperately need.”

Michael Tsai covers local and state politics for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at michael.tsai@charter.com.