Rep. Watson Coleman Votes to Pass Fiscal Year 2026 Minibus, Rejects DHS Funding Bill

Rep. Watson Coleman Votes to Pass Fiscal Year 2026 Minibus, Rejects DHS Funding Bill

Minibus includes funding covered by Labor Health and Human Services; Transportation and Housing and Urban Development; and Defense subcommittees.

Today, Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12), New Jersey's sole member of the Appropriations Committee, voted for the FY26 Minibus covering Labor Health and Human Services (LHHS); Transportation and Housing and Urban Development (THUD); and Defense subcommittees.

The Minibus stabilizes funding for the Office of Minority Health, maternal and child health programs, critical investments in our highways, roads, and bridges, and rules to protect renters and prevent the evictions of over 4 million households.

In addition, Congresswoman Watson Coleman helped include safeguards to prevent arbitrary cuts to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration grants like those seen last week.

"This minibus spending package restores much of the vital programs and services that Republicans had sought to deprive our communities," said Watson Coleman. "While the Defense Department's budget is far too large and in need of an audit there is far more good in this bill than bad."

Congresswoman Watson Coleman voted against the Department of Homeland Security funding bill, citing a lack of necessary reforms to curb abuses by ICE and DHS leadership.

"The DHS funding bill failed to address the very real problem of an out-of-control Immigration and Customs Enforcement that has made meeting arbitrary quotas and filling detention hall beds its priorities over the safety and civil rights of law-abiding residents," said Watson Coleman. "Until real reforms are made that respect the safety and security of our communities, I cannot vote to provide further funding toward a seemingly lawless agency."

The minibus also includes over $13 million in funding for 11 important projects in the 12th District:

• $450,000 for infrastructure upgrades along Route 522 in South Brunswick

• $2,000,000 for a recreational development project - the Assunpink Greenway in Trenton - to transform former industrial sites into an active recreation site

• $850,000 for critical ADA renovations to the Bound Brook Memorial Library to increase accessibility

• $1,000,000 for the North Brunswick Community Resilience Hub to provide immediate shelter to residents during extreme weather events and other emergencies

• $1,200,000 for design and construction of a roadway and pedestrian bridge at Cedar Brook Park in Plainfield

• $500,000 for necessary improvements to the building housing the Old Bridge Food Bank

• $3,150,000 for a community center in Plainfield to be utilized for educational outreach, workforce development, and health monitoring

• $850,000 for HVAC replacement and infrastructure improvements at the Otto Kaufman Community Center in Montgomery

• $1,000,000 for a Recreation Center in Hillsborough

• $2,000,000 for the Coalport Neighborhood Revitalization and Facility Redevelopment program to renovate an existing vacant city-owned building in Trenton and establish a mixed-use facility that will advance economic opportunities by supporting workforce and small business development

These projects are in addition to four other projects funded in the minibus passed on January 8th.

This funding bill now heads to the Senate.