The U.S. Senate Republican Conference Friday officially approved U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander as the first Tennessee Republican ever to serve on the Appropriations Committee. Sen. Alexander announced that he will serve on the Appropriations subcommittees which fund national parks, scientific research and transportation programs.
"Serving on the Appropriations Committee will help me advance my priorities for the people of Tennessee - energy independence, the environment, education and job creation," Sen.
Alexander said. "For example, the Interior Subcommittee has jurisdiction over the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and science funding will affect our efforts to maintain our brainpower advantage to keep our good jobs from going overseas."
The Appropriations subcommittees on which Sen. Alexander will serve include:
Interior - which funds national parks, including the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF).
Commerce-Justice-Science (CJS) - which funds the FBI, equipment for first responders such as police and firefighters, courthouse construction, NASA and the National Science Foundation.
Homeland Security - which funds the Transportation Security Administration, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and new detection technology being researched at Oak Ridge.
Transportation and Housing and Urban Development (HUD) - which funds highway construction and mass transit systems.
State and Foreign Operations - which funds U.S. embassies and operations abroad.
Legislative Branch - which funds the U.S. Capitol complex.
Sen. Alexander will also be the third ranking Republican on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and will also serve on the Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee and the Rules and Administration Committee.