Capito to chair Legislative Branch Subcommittee of Senate Appropriations Committee

Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., will serve as chair of the Legislative Branch Subcommittee of the Senate Committee on Appropriations.

Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., the Appropriation Committee’s new chairman, made the announcement Monday. Capito is the only freshman senator who will chair a subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee.

“Having a lead role in determining our nation’s spending priorities is a tremendous responsibility that I take very seriously,” Capito said. “I look forward to working with Sen. Cochran and the entire Appropriations Committee to ensure taxpayer dollars are used wisely.

“I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to lead the Legislative Branch subcommittee and to ensure West Virginia has a voice in the appropriations process.”

The Senate Appropriations Committee, the largest committee in the Senate, has 12 different subcommittees.

They oversee the Constitutional obligation to fund all government functions and programs.

Each year, after Congress passes a federal budget for the upcoming fiscal year, the Appropriations subcommittees receives information about what the budget has set for federal spending ceilings.