The measure, which passed by a 318-109 vote, provides funding until the end of the fiscal year Sept. 30 and averts the possibility of a government shut down when the previous temporary budget runs out on March 27.

Hanabusa was among 82 Democrats who voted against a measure that was passed by the Democratic Senate, but keeps in place federal sequestration cuts for now. The measure does give the Department of Defense additional flexibility to ease some of the impacts of the cuts, but Hanabusa has said it still decreases funding that could impact defense-dependant Hawaii.

Gabbard supported the House version with sequestration when it was initially sent to the Senate. She had said the maintenance of sequestration was unfortunate but it avoided a shutdown.

Hanabusa said in part:

“This was not an easy decision, but in the end I could not support this bill because it does not address sequestration, and that is bad for my constituents and our country… It does nothing to fix sequestration, or provide flexibility for federal departments to implement the cuts in a planned, thoughtful, and less harmful way.

“For example, under this measure, sequestration could still cause 22 furlough days for our almost 20,000 civilian defense workers in Hawaii, resulting in real losses of $138 million in compensation …  In addition to the negative impact on our local economy, I believe this is too much to ask of our civilian workers, who have already sacrificed so much. …

“One of my colleagues spoke on the floor today about the heroic actions of shipyard workers in her district, who risked  their lives to extinguish a fire onboard a nuclear submarine, the USS Miami. That kind of commitment to their job and our nation—the kind of service provided by workers in Hawaii and across America as well—should earn our workforce our gratitude.

“Allowing sequestration and the indiscriminate across-the-board cuts to continue is irresponsible and ignores our duty to provide solutions. Instead of abandoning debates and cutting poor deals, we need to make tough decisions and try harder. Solutions are available, as we showed in the case of rescinding the BAE stop-work order at Schofield. 

“I am unsatisfied simply hoping that sequestration will be addressed later down the road. The last time we made an assumption like that, we thought that sequestration wouldn’t happen at all. At this point, half-measures are no substitute for hard work and tough decisions.”

Gabbard said this:

The final Continuing Appropriations bill that passed the House of Representatives today is an improved version of the initial legislation, but it is far from where we need to be. Both parties came together to ensure that greater flexibility in funding was provided to the Department of Defense, as well as addressing some domestic priorities like agriculture, public safety, and rural development. The bill also prevents a government shutdown next week, protecting our economy from yet another manufactured crisis.“There is still much work to be done to ensure we are protecting and serving those most in need. As we plan for our long-term future, I will continue to push for common-sense initiatives that strike a balance between targeted spending cuts and closing tax loopholes for special interests.“I am pleased that this bill reinstates Department of Defense tuition assistance education programs that were initially suspended due to the across-the-board cuts which were put in effect earlier this month. These earned educational benefits exist to ensure our troops gain further leadership skills, and to set them up for success upon their eventual transition from military to civilian life. Our service members have made tremendous personal sacrifices for our country. This is a step toward ensuring they are properly served in return.”

The measure, proposed by Wisconsin Republican Paul Ryan, would also bring changes to Medicare and Obamacare.

— Kery Murakami