Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA) released the following statement after his vote to pass the second minibus to fully fund the government through Fiscal Year 2024.

“After over a year of working with leaders and stakeholders across Georgia, and pushing my colleagues in Washington, I’m proud to have secured a robust government funding package for communities across our state. Passing this legislation ahead of a government shutdown was of the utmost importance for Georgia families, communities, and small businesses. Part of ensuring the government did not shutdown included voting down any measures that would have sent this bill back to the House, slowing down the process at the 11th hour and leading to a guaranteed funding lapse.

“One of the measures that, if passed, would have led to a government shutdown was the Laken Riley Act. My heart breaks for the family of Laken Riley and my prayers continue to be with her family and the Athens community. But instead of pursuing patchwork fixes, at the end of the day Congress must remain focused on finding substantive solutions to fix our broken immigration system, protect our immigrant friends and neighbors, and secure our southern border—without shutting down our federal government, which would have been detrimental to countless Georgians.”

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