Southwest Montana News

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congressman Matt Rosendale (MT-02) has called on the House Rules Committee to permit his amendment to H.R. 8774, the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2025, to be debated openly on the House floor. The amendment seeks to defund assisted reproductive technology at the Department of Defense (DoD), including halting funding for in vitro fertilization (IVF).

Rep. Rosendale stated: "It's Tuesday, and I'm here in Washington, D.C., in front of the Rules Committee hearing room. I was hoping to testify on my amendment to the Department of Defense appropriations act today to eliminate any funding that would go towards IVF treatments through the Department of Defense. Unfortunately, all legislation has to go through what I call the 'Super Legislators,' which is the Rules Committee, to be considered whether they will allow it to go out to the floor or not."

He continued: "I've long been an advocate for what they call an open rule process to make sure that all of our amendments are at least considered out on the floor, let them be debated, let them be discussed, let them be voted up or down by the 435 Members of Congress, not the special 13 'Super Legislators' that serve here in the Rules Committee."

Rosendale urged his colleagues on the Rules Committee: "They should at least allow this amendment to come to the floor and I urge my Members to support me if they believe, like I do, that life begins at conception and that we shouldn’t be using taxpayer dollars to support IVF which potentially kills more children every year than Planned Parenthood."