An unidentified member of the Appropriations panel, who identified himself as chairman of the Energy and Water Development Subcommittee, urged the House to pass H.R. 6938, saying, "The bill provides a total of $58,000,000,000 to advance our national security, strengthen our economy, and unleash American energy dominance." The transcript does not record a vote.

Why it matters: The member framed the bill as a package of national security and energy priorities, emphasizing large programs for nuclear security, scientific research and water infrastructure that would affect federal spending priorities and multiple federal agencies.

The bill and major line items: The speaker said the bill would provide $25,400,000,000 for the National Nuclear Security Administration to "prioritize the continued modernization of the nuclear weapon stockpile and the United States Navy nuclear fleet." He also identified $8,400,000,000 for the Department of Energy's Office of Science to support AI and quantum research and $10,300,000,000 for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, including full harbor maintenance and more than $2,000,000,000 for flood and storm damage reduction and inland waterways construction projects. The speaker added that the bill prioritizes Bureau of Reclamation projects to boost water supply and drought resilience.

Trade-offs and priorities: The member said the bill reduces funding by "over 29% across numerous other department programs," including applied energy technology offices, to concentrate resources on the stated priorities. He described the package as supporting domestic energy production, advancing new nuclear technologies and reducing reliance on foreign sources for critical minerals.

Acknowledgments and next steps: The speaker praised Chairman Cole and Ranking Member Marcy Kaptur, calling the measure "a strong bipartisan bill," and thanked legislative staff for working through the holidays to complete the measure. He closed with an appeal to pass the bill: "Let's pass this great bill for America." The transcript provided ends without a recorded motion or roll-call vote on H.R. 6938.

The committee transcript records the speech but does not include a formal recorded vote or further procedural action on the measure in the provided segments.