WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) released the following statement on passage of the omnibus appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2015. This bill will fund government operations through September, 2015.

Voting for the budget bill today was a tough decision for me. The process that led to this package is another unfortunate example of the dysfunction that has become the norm in Congress, and I’m unhappy with a number of the unrelated policy provisions that were dropped in at the last minute. I’m particularly troubled by a measure that will likely lead to reduced benefits for thousands of beneficiaries of multiemployer pension plans. In short, this is no way to conduct policy, and as an incoming member of the Appropriations Committee, I intend to work with my colleagues in the next Congress to try to reverse the worst of these provisions.

But the alternative to passing this bill would be worse— another short-term continuing resolution or a government shutdown. Either would inflict real pain on millions of people in Connecticut and across the country. And while there are a number of things I disagree with in this bill, there are also incredibly important priorities that must not be left behind. For one, the bill appropriates billions of dollars to fight Ebola here and overseas—funding that is nothing short of critical to combat this public health nightmare. If this bill fails, the U.S. cannot fight Ebola effectively.  The bill also supports Connecticut’s economy in major ways, including even more funding than the President originally requested for critical defense programs that are the lifeblood of Connecticut’s economy. This bill will surge manufacturing with more Blackhawk helicopters, F135 engines for the Joint Strike Fighter and research and development for new submarines and Combat Rescue Helicopters. For the hardworking men and women in Connecticut’s defense industry, it’s a bigger win than we even expected. Important initiatives to establish advanced manufacturing centers to help grow Connecticut’s next generation of manufacturing industries, and provisions that will support conservation efforts in Connecticut and elsewhere, are further reason to endorse this bill.

The bottom line, however, is that Congress needs to stop lurching from manufactured crisis to manufactured crisis. Once again, members of the Senate were faced with a take-it-or-leave-it deal at the last minute. Because we don’t work together like we should, it’s become nearly impossible to pass appropriations bills on time and to fund the government in a responsible way. It is my sincere hope that next year will see an end to brinksmanship and a return to regular order—and working toward that goal will be one of my top priorities as a new member of the Appropriations Committee next Congress.