MIL USHOR-2b Engine

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Haley Stevens (MI-11)

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, U.S. Representative Haley Stevens (D-MI) introduced four bills in the Congress to help lower housing costs for Michigan families. This comprehensive package of legislation would help Americans buy their first home, age in place, find housing close to needed services, and much more. The four bills are: the Healthy Affordable Housing Act, the Home Accessibility Tax Credit Act, the Fix Moldy Housing Act, and the First Time Homeowner Savings Plan Act.

“Every Michigan family deserves a safe, affordable, and accessible place to live. But for too many in our great state, the cost of housing is way too high. That’s why I’m introducing a comprehensive package of housing legislation — to bring down costs,” said Rep. Haley Stevens. “With the Healthy Affordable Housing Act, the Home Accessibility Tax Credit Act, the Fix Moldy Housing Act, and the First Time Homeowner Savings Plan Act we’re not just investing in our infrastructure—we’re investing in families, communities, and our future. This package brings essential services closer to home, increases the supply of housing, tackles environmental hazards, empowers first-time buyers, and ensures older Michiganders and those with disabilities have the support they need to live independently. I’m honored to lead this bold step forward, uniting diverse voices and innovative solutions to make sure every Michigander has a safe, affordable place to call home.”

The Healthy Affordable Housing Act introduced with U.S. Representative Ritchie Torres (D-NY), directs the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to create a competitive grant program to fund affordable housing near needed services including grocery stores, childcare, and public transportation. This bill is supported by the Michigan State Housing Development Authority, Oakland County Michigan, the Corporation for Supportive Housing, the National Community Development Association, the Michigan Hospital Association, and Habitat for Humanity Oakland County. 

“There is no issue more important to me than expanding access to safe, healthy, and affordable housing. When I was growing up in the Bronx, public housing was a lifeline for my family,” said Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) in support of the Healthy Affordable Housing Act. “That being said, far too often, public housing units like the one I grew up in lack adequate access to essential services – groceries, healthcare, public transportation, and more – leaving their residents siphoned off from the rest of our society and set up to fail. I refuse to sit by and allow this unacceptable status quo to continue. That’s why I am joining my colleague Rep. Stevens in introducing the Healthy Affordable Housing Act, which would re-invigorate our nation’s affordable housing infrastructure and ensure that they are established with a host of necessary services in close proximity. I would not be where I am today without the stability affordable housing gave me and my family. I want to ensure every American, no matter their zip code, can say the same, and that’s what this bill tries to achieve.”

The Home Accessibility Tax Credit Act would provide a refundable tax credit to help seniors and Americans with disabilities finance retrofitting their homes to meet their accessibility needs. U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME) introduced companion legislation in the United States Senate. This bill is supported by the Paralyzed Veterans of America, the National Disability Institute, the National Council on Independent Living, and the National Federation of the Blind. 

The Fix Moldy Housing Act would help individuals and local governments remove mold from homes and public buildings to increase the supply of healthy housing and make sure every home in Michigan is safe to live in. This bill is endorsed by the American Industrial Hygiene Association, the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification, and the National Environmental Health Association. 

The First Time Homeowner Savings Plan Act would increase the amount first-time homebuyers could pull from their IRA savings from the $10,000 set in the 1990s to $25,000, indexed to inflation to use as a down payment on their first home. The First Time Homeowner Savings Plan Act is endorsed by the National Association of Realtors, the American Bankers Association, and the Mortgage Bankers Association.

A full list of supporting quotes can be found here.

The full text of each piece of legislation can be found here.

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Haley Stevens (MI-11)

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Representative Haley Stevens (D-MI) introduced the House Expansion Commission Act to commission a study that will make sure every Michigander has a voice in the Congress. As our country has grown, our Congress has not kept up and it means too few lawmakers are advocating for Michiganders. The bill would establish a commission to study expanding the number of seats in the U.S. House of Representatives to ensure every American has adequate representation in the Congress as our framers intended.

“At the heart of our democracy is the principle that every citizen’s voice matters. But the size of current Congressional districts is far bigger than what our framers intended. That’s why I am proud to introduce the House Expansion Commission Act, to make sure every Michigander has adequate representation in the Congress,” said Rep. Haley Stevens. “By establishing a commission to study and recommend solutions for expanding the House, we are taking action to ensure that every voice, in every corner of this nation, is heard and represented. It is time to modernize our system to reflect our nation’s diversity and growth, and this bill will help guide us in that direction.”

“America’s founders were great innovators, and they wanted each generation to improve their system of government. In this moment of uncertainty and historic distrust in government, Congress should consider innovations to become more effective at meeting the needs of the American people,” said Dustin Wahl, Executive Director of Fix our House. “Expanding the number of seats in Congress could be one way to do that, by making members more responsive to their constituents, better representing our communities, and bringing the first branch of government more into line with founding principles. We at Fix Our House thank Rep. Stevens for her leadership on this issue.”

“Our country is in great need of election reforms that give voters more choice and greater say and bring our elected officials closer to the people they represent,” said Meredith Sumpter, president and CEO of FairVote, a nonpartisan organization seeking better elections. “The House Expansion Commission Act is a valuable way to explore one of these potential reforms. We thank Rep. Stevens for her leadership in advancing this important conversation.”

“The framers intended the House to grow with the nation,” said Drew Penrose, policy strategist at Protect Democracy, “and until 1929, the norm was to add members after every census. Our 2024 report— WhereWillTheyAllSit.org — explored how to modernize the Capitol Campus for a larger House, showing not only that expansion is possible, but that it could lead to a more efficient and effective Congress.”

“For nearly a century, the size of the House of Representatives has remained frozen at 435 members – even as our population has grown by hundreds of millions,” said Stand Up America Executive Director, Christina Harvey, “The House Expansion Commission Act is an important step toward modernizing our democracy. By examining whether expansion is needed, this bill will help us understand how Congress can better reflect the size, diversity, and needs of today’s America. We applaud Rep. Stevens for her innovation and leadership in tackling this long-overdue issue.”

This legislation is endorsed by FairVote and Stand Up America.

Full text of the legislation can be found here.

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Andy Biggs (AZ-05)

Today, Congressman Andy Biggs (R-AZ) introduced a resolution in support of President Trump’s removal of members and affiliates of Tren de Aragua, a violent, transnational criminal gang from Venezuela. Congressman Biggs’s resolution:

• Emphasizes heinous crimes committed by Tren de Aragua members across the United States;
• Recognizes members and affiliates of Tren de Aragua as alien enemies perpetuating an invasion of the United States;
• Affirms that President Trump is properly exercising executive removal authority under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798.

“Tren de Aragua is a foreign terrorist organization, and their members can no longer be permitted to wreak havoc on U.S. soil,” said Congressman Biggs.

“The Alien Enemies Act gives the President of the United States the authority to detain and deport aliens from foreign adversarial nations, and the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed that authority yesterday.

“Members of the violent gang Tren de Aragua illegally invaded the United States during Joe Biden’s four-year open border campaign, and President Trump is acting well within his authority to protect our homeland.

“Congress must stand behind President Trump as he works to fulfill the demands of the American people to secure our border and restore safety to our communities.”

Cosponsors of the resolution are: Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), Rep. Clay Higgins (R-LA), Rep. Andy Ogles (R-TN), Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL), Rep. Barry Moore (R-AL), Rep. Eli Crane (R-AZ), Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-WI), Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD), Rep. Josh Brecheen (R-OK), Rep. Brandon Gill (R-TX), Rep. Sheri Biggs (R-SC), and Rep. Michael Cloud (R-TX).

The resolution can be read here.

The Daily Signal covered the legislation here.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Ron Estes (R-Kansas)

Rep. Estes Votes to Rein in Rogue Judges

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Clay Higgins (R-LA)

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Clay Higgins (R-LA) voted to pass H.R. 1526, the No Rogue Rulings Act, which would rein in activist judges who have overstepped their Constitutional role to block President Trump’s executive actions.
 
The legislation limits the ability of U.S. district courts to issue nationwide injunctions, broad rulings that extend beyond the parties involved in a case.
 
“Rogue, anti-Trump judges are a serious problem. Unelected judges have abused their authority,” said Congressman Higgins. “The No Rogue Rulings Act reins them in. We are restoring Article III parameters as envisioned by the Founders.”
 
Read the legislation here.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Scott Peters (52nd District of California)

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Representatives Scott Peters (D-CA-50) and Vince Fong (R-CA-20) introduced the Save Our Sequoias (SOS) Act, a bipartisan initiative to give land managers the tools to save the iconic giant sequoia and reduce the severity of wildfires that contribute to climate change.

This bill would enhance interagency coordination, accelerate forest restoration efforts, and provide important resources to land managers to guard these ancient trees from further destruction. The SOS Act would reverse the damage caused by catastrophic wildfires and restore the resilience of Giant Sequoia groves, providing critical ecological, scientific, and cultural benefits.

“For generations, the majestic giant sequoia has provided innumerable cultural, environmental, and recreational benefits to humans,” said Rep. Peters. “Unfortunately, insufficient land management and climate change have led to increasingly severe fires that threaten the survival of giant sequoias and the stability of the climate. In just one year, the California wildfires that threaten the Sequoias contributed more to climate change than the state’s entire power sector. Our Save Our Sequoias Act charts a new path forward in federal forest and wildfire policy to combat climate change and ensure the giant sequoias stand safely in their natural habitat for years to come.”

“California’s Giant Sequoias are a symbol of our state’s natural heritage,” said Rep. Fong. “We cannot afford to stand by as continued forest mismanagement destroys our natural resources. It is essential we enact legislation that enforces proactive forest management, and harnesses the power of science, collaboration, and expedited action to protect the remaining Giant Sequoias, return resilience to our forests, and ensure these trees endure for generations.”

Representative Peters originally introduced the SOS Act in 2022 with former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Bruce Westerman, and again in 2023.

Representative Peters and Chairman Westerman are also the authors of the Fix Our Forests Act, a comprehensive bill to reduce the procedural challenges that slow fire prevention work on high-risk areas. The bill also provides resources to improve community resiliency to megafires, like assistance with removing hazardous brush near homes and prepositioning firefighting resources during high fire risk times.

“Save the Redwoods League and our federal, state, and tribal partners led significant efforts to restore resilience to the giant sequoias in the past year, yet the existential threat across the range remains severe. It is critically urgent that the National Park Service and USDA-Forest Service have the tools and sustained/permanent funding necessary to implement near-term restoration actions and long-term stewardship of the Giant Sequoia ecosystem. Ensuring a robust future of this iconic species is among the League’s highest priorities,” said Kirsten Tobey, interim president and CEO of Save the Redwoods League. “We welcome the opportunity presented by the reintroduction of the Save Our Sequoias Act to work with Congress to secure the necessary resources and flexibility for our partners to do this critical work, comprehensively and sustainably. The League applauds the leadership of Congressman Fong, Congressman Peters and all the bill’s supporters for their commitment to giant sequoia conservation.”

“The “Save Our Sequoias Act” is a long overdue effort to empower resourceful experts and stewards to employ critical resiliency efforts to combat the very real threat of fire that plagues roughly 70 Sequoia groves as drought conditions increase,” said Shine Nieto, Chairman, Tule River Tribe. “We recognize that there are currently few long-term drought solutions in place in the area to protect our forest and lands – so we must work together to save our sequoias. The Tule River Tribe is proud to support the passage of the Save the Sequoias Act.

Over the last century, fire suppression practices and forest mismanagement have led to a dangerous build-up of fuels, which, in combination with increasingly intense wildfires, has caused the unparalleled destruction of Giant Sequoia groves. For 800 years, we lost no Sequoias due to fire, but in the last few years alone, there has been a nearly 20% loss of these trees.

The SOS Act will provide the following key measures to address this crisis:

• Reforestation Strategy: Establish a comprehensive reforestation strategy to regenerate Giant Sequoias in groves destroyed by recent wildfires, helping to ensure the long-term survival of these majestic trees.
• Expedited Emergency Procedures: Declare an emergency to codify existing emergency procedures, streamline environmental reviews, and maintain robust scientific analysis to accelerate necessary forest treatments.
• Enhanced Coordination: Strengthen collaboration between federal, state, tribal, and local land managers through shared stewardship agreements and the creation of the Giant Sequoia Lands Coalition, a partnership between current Giant Sequoia managers.
• Health and Resiliency Assessment: Establish a Giant Sequoia Health and Resiliency Assessment to prioritize forest management projects, track progress, and ensure ongoing study of the trees’ health and resiliency over time.
• Hazardous Fuels Reduction Funding: Provide funding and create a new grant program to support hazardous fuels reduction treatments in and around Giant Sequoia groves, mitigating the risk of wildfires.

Speeding up science-based forest treatments will boost resilience, improve air and water quality, reduce carbon emissions, and protect vital habitats. Giant Sequoias, the world’s largest trees, are found in 70 groves across 37,000 acres in California, where nearly one-fifth have been destroyed since 2015. The time to protect these irreplaceable pieces of history for future generations is now.

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Scott Peters (52nd District of California)

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Representative Scott Peters (CA-50) filed two amendments to the Republican budget blueprint, which extends $4.5 trillion in temporary tax cuts that add to the national debt and cuts vital programs like Medicaid to offset the cost. His first amendment would strike a provision that allows Republicans to pretend that extending these tax cuts skewed toward the wealthy costs nothing. Non-partisan experts at the Committee for a Responsible Budget have estimated that this Republican gimmick alone could explode the national debt by an additional $3.4 to $4.6 trillion. His second amendment would stop Republican attempts to cut the National Institutes of Health (NIH) budget and instead boost it by billions of dollars. Republicans on the House Rules Committee refused to consider Rep. Peters’ amendments.

“As Trump’s tariffs drive up the cost of living for American households, Republicans in Congress double down on a reckless budget that blows up the national debt at the expense of hard-working Americans,” said Rep. Scott Peters. “I’ve stood with some of my Republicans colleagues to call out our national debt in the past, but now these same people are poised to dramatically increase it. My amendment would have forced Republicans to face the truth: their budget is cruel and not at all fiscally conservative.”

“Countless families around the country are desperate for cures to Alzheimer’s, cancer, and other diseases that depend on government funded research,” said Rep. Peters. “It is both cruel and wasteful to stop these clinical studies and trials as be forced to throw out their data. New cures to these diseases will save the government money in the long run as we move patients from expensive long-term care to healthy lives. We should invest more, not less in NIH and other basic scientific research.”      

Representative Peters is the author of the Fiscal Commission Act, legislation to establish a bipartisan, bicameral, and open-doored commission to tackle our nation’s long-term debt, help us avoid automatic and across-the-board cuts to Social Security and Medicare, and secure a more prosperous future for our children. This approach stands in stark contrast to the partisan bill Republicans are advancing, which will only make our debt problems worse.

San Diego is home to one of the country’s largest life sciences ecosystems, including world-class public and private research institutions and private companies that turn discoveries into therapies and cures. Rep. Peters’ district receives nearly $1 billion in NIH grant funding every year, more than any other district in California.

In February, the Trump Administration announced a cap on all NIH grants for expenditures like lab space, utilities, IT, and equipment. These investments are integral to the work researchers do, and the proposed cuts will result in an estimated $800 million cut in funding in California alone. The NIH funding cap will devastate the development of life-saving research, inhibit patient access to life-saving treatments and clinical trials, and cede American dominance in biomedical research to our foreign competitors like China and Russia for years to come. In response, Rep. Peters led a letter demanding the Trump Administration preserve NIH funding. In March, Rep. Peters brought Dr. James B. Brewer, MD, PhD, medical professor and chair of the Department of Neurosciences at the University of California, San Diego, as his guest to the President’s Joint Address to Congress to highlight the devastation of these cuts. While federal courts have blocked the President’s across-the-board cuts, the administration is already looking for other ways to cut NIH grant funding. 

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Don Beyer (D-VA)

Congressman Don Beyer (D-VA) today ripped the “logic” of President Trump’s insane tariff regime to shreds today during a House Ways and Means Committee hearing on Trump’s trade policy with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.

During the course of his testimony, Greer repeatedly advocated for increased tariffs on top U.S. trading partners – tariffs Trump abruptly paused during the hearing. Greer, who ostensibly serves as Trump’s top adviser on trade policy, obliviously continued to defend the paused tariffs to members of the Committee for some time until he was informed of the sudden change.

Video of Beyer’s exchange can be viewed here. Some of his comments to Ambassador Greer: 

“Ambassador Greer, you have a most awful job: to try to convince us and the people we represent that the President’s trade policies are wise and measured when the truth is they are stupid and bad.”
…
“I want to quickly run through a few of the ways the logic behind the Trump tariffs makes no sense. You got the math wrong, according to the people whose research you cited. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to enter into the record a New York Times article by former Treasury official Brent Neiman titled, ‘The Trump White House Cited My Research to Justify Tariffs. It Got It All Wrong.’ This math error had the effect of quadrupling the tariffs Trump applied to some of our biggest trading partners.

“Trump exempted some goods – notably oil – but not others, including things we simply cannot produce in the United States. Why tariff bananas? Why tariff cocoa? Why tariff coffee? We don’t have the capacity to produce these things at a scale that meets domestic demand.

“Trump logic equates any trade deficit with ‘cheating,’ in fact he called it ‘rape.’ But even this stupid logic didn’t help Australia or Brazil or Singapore, all countries with whom we have a trade surplus. How does Australia negotiate an end to a trade deficit that doesn’t exist?

“Some countries have a deficit because we import things we want but they are too poor to afford our exports. A perfect example is Madagascar. We buy something like 60 percent of our vanilla from Madagascar, but they have one of the lowest GDP-per-capita rates in the world, and they just can’t afford many of our products. We just hit them with a 47% tariff.

Trump is hinting that maybe if countries lower tariffs on us he might drop tariffs on them, a little bit or some or possibly. But Vietnam, knowing that Trump was coming, massively cut their tariffs on the U.S. to appease him ahead of his announcement last week. Instead you slapped a 46% tariff on them anyway. So what are the Vietnamese supposed to do?

“Trump declared a phony national emergency and imposed tariffs on Canada to punish our closest ally for ‘fentanyl smuggling,’ despite the fact that our own government says the amount of smuggling at the northern border is vanishingly small, less than one percent. How does Canada get out of tariffs imposed for something we admit they’re not doing?

“Trump is risking our economy to bring back factory jobs that pay far less than the 8 million jobs listed in the JOLTS report right now, 8 million jobs available in America, that pay far more in fast-growing like health care, clean energy, or data science.

“The Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick, is on television raving about shifting millions of Americans to work on, and I quote, “screwing in little screws to make iPhones.”

“You guys are blasting nearly every product from nearly every country with these tariffs, Senator Tillis yesterday called it ‘a trade war on all fronts.’ It hurts our alliances, it is hurting our economy, it hurts our ability to make and keep free trade agreements – which is supposedly your job.”

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Hakeem Jeffries (8th District of New York)

Washington, DC – Today, Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries spoke on the House Floor in opposition to the reckless Republican budget which would enact the largest Medicaid cut in American history and raise cuts on hardworking American taxpayers. 

Leader Jeffries: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Let me also thank the distinguished gentleman from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Representative Boyle who’s doing a tremendous job leading House Democrats on the Budget Committee.

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, I urged you to join me on the House Floor to debate this reckless budget one-on-one, so we would have an opportunity to fully air—in a transparent way—before the American people, Democratic values and Republican values, the Democratic perspective on this budget and the Republican perspective. I’m on the House floor right now. We’re ready to debate, one-on-one, prepared to yield to you for a colloquy at any time, so we can discuss the Democratic vision for building an affordable economy, that lowers costs and makes life better for the American people and the Republican budget proposal that would enact the largest Medicaid cut in American history in order to pass massive tax breaks for your billionaire donors like Elon Musk. Mr. Speaker, I’m ready to yield. I’m ready to debate one-on-one on this House Floor. And I promise not to rebuke you in the name of Jesus.

Here in America, we were told—we were told by Donald Trump and House Republicans that you were going to lower the high cost of living for everyday Americans. In fact, we were told that you were going to do it on day one, and it hasn’t happened. President Trump and House Republicans told us that you were going to deliver the golden age of America. But over the last several months, we haven’t witnessed the golden age of America. We’ve witnessed a rotten age. You are crashing the economy in real time, driving us toward a Republican recession that’s going to hurt children, hurt families, hurt seniors, hurt everyday Americans, hurt veterans and hurt people across the land.

You haven’t done anything to address the high cost of living. As Democrats, we recognize that America is too expensive. The cost of living in this great country is far too high. Housing costs are too high. Grocery costs are too high, insurance costs are too high, utility costs are too high and childcare costs are too high. America is too expensive. We should be working to lower the high cost of living. Far too many people in this country can’t get ahead, and they can barely get by, struggling to make ends meet, living paycheck to paycheck. We should be acting decisively to address the high cost of living. President Trump promised costs would go down on day one. Costs aren’t going down, they’re going up. Inflation is going up. Consumer confidence is coming down. And these reckless policies, including the Trump tariffs, are driving us toward a recession. And on top of it all, you are presenting a budget that’s going to make things worse.

So we stand here today in strong opposition to this reckless Republican budget. It’s a cruel budget. It’s a budget that will have catastrophic consequences on everyday Americans. It’s an assault on the economy, it’s an assault on Medicaid, an assault on health care, an assault on nutritional assistance to children and families, it’s an assault on older Americans, an assault on hospitals and nursing homes and Community Health Centers, it’s an assault on veterans, which is why we reject it, because we’re going to stand on the side of the American people.

Now, there are so many different problems with this budget resolution, but let’s begin with the fact that Republicans are setting in motion the largest Medicaid cut in American history. That’s going to hurt people all across this country, in small-town America, in urban America, in rural America, in the heartland of America, in Appalachia. All across this country, people will be hurt. Health care will be taken away from children, pregnant women, everyday Americans with disabilities, older Americans, people in nursing homes, people who are receiving long-term care. Nursing homes will close. That will impact everybody in a given community. Hospitals will shut down in rural America, in small-town America, all across America. The largest Medicaid cut in American history. It’s completely and totally unacceptable.

At the same period of time, targeting nutritional assistance for children, infants, women, families, veterans, older Americans—literally taking food out of the mouths of babies in the United States of America, the wealthiest country in the history of the world. This is why we say it’s a cruel budget. It’s a callous budget. It’s a budget that will have catastrophic consequences. Veterans will be hurt—people who have served this country admirably. They stood up for us. We should always stand up for them, not target them, as will be the case in this reckless Republican budget.

And so, we’re here to make it clear. Hands off Medicaid. Hands off the health care of the United States of America. Hands off nutritional assistance. Hands off veterans. Hands off everyday Americans struggling to make ends meet. Republicans do nothing to lower the high cost of living. In fact, you’re making the affordability crisis in America worse, not better, then you target earned benefits and things that are important to the American people, like Medicaid, to visit upon it such an extreme cut. And what are you doing it for? What is it in service of? All to pass massive tax breaks for your billionaire donors like Elon Musk. The president himself has made that clear. At the end of the day, that’s what this is all about. How extraordinary is that? As Democrats, we support tax cuts for everyday Americans, tax cuts for small businesses, tax cuts for family farmers, tax cuts for those who need relief, not tax cuts for the wealthy, the well-off and the well-connected. And so, we stand in strong opposition to this GOP tax scam.

The reason why, Mr. Speaker, I’ve said, let’s debate this on the House Floor, directly, through a colloquy, transparently, to make it clear to the American people where we stand and where Republicans stand at such a fragile moment with so many people in this country struggling to make ends meet. And so, as House Democrats, we’re going to continue to stand on the side of the American people. We’re going to stand on the side of our children, of our families, of our veterans, of older Americans, of everyone aspiring to achieve the American dream. Stand up in defense of Medicaid, stand up in defense of veterans benefits, stand up in defense of nutritional assistance, stand up in defense of economic opportunity and a fair tax code that is designed to build an economy that actually works for everyday Americans, as opposed to an economy of the billionaires, by the billionaires and for the billionaires. That is why we strongly oppose this reckless Republican budget resolution and we will not rest until we bury it in the ground, never to rise again. I yield back.

Full speech can be watched here.

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07)

Text of Letter (PDF)

WASHINGTON – Today, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) joined Congressman Richard E. Neal, Ranking Member of the House Ways and Means Committee, and the entire Massachusetts Congressional delegation – Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), and Representatives Jim McGovern (MA-02), Lori Trahan (MA-03), Jake Auchincloss (MA-04), Katherine Clark (MA-05), Seth Moulton (MA-06), Stephen Lynch (MA-08), and Bill Keating (MA-09) – in demanding answers from the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. after the abrupt shuttering of the entire HHS Regional Office (RO) in Boston, Massachusetts, on April 1, 2025.

In the letter, the lawmakers write, “It is impossible to overstate the lasting consequences this reckless action will have on every single person in this region—whether the families who rely on Region 1 employees dutifully overseeing child care licensing systems to ensure they deliver quality care to our children, or the coordination these civil servants conduct with state survey agencies to make sure all our nursing homes meet federal safety standards. Through steadfast commitment to the programs they oversee, employees of ROs provide a service to all of us whether we know it or not.”

The HHS Boston RO employs hundreds of workers who serve Americans from Maine to Connecticut. As the economic catastrophe caused by Trump’s Tariff Tax devastates communities and businesses across the country, the administration continues to make senseless layoffs, adding even more individuals to the ranks of the unemployed. These job losses will have trickle-down effects on other businesses in the area during an already challenging time.

The Boston RO specializes in health care innovation, partnering with drug companies, biotech groups, and other innovators to ensure gaps in research are being filled and the cures of tomorrow come to fruition. Eliminating the Boston RO will both deny the people of New England access to public health officials with expertise in our local communities and halt innovation in its tracks, with ramifications felt by the whole country for generations to come.

The ROs are also on the front lines of fighting fraud, waste, and abuse alongside local law enforcement, as well as the vanguard coordinating responses against disease and outbreaks. Its closure will leave our communities and our programs less safe.

The lawmakers continue, “It could open our region to massive risks of fraud and abuse of our vital federal programs. And it could provide the pathway for another pernicious disease to sweep the nation, absent vital on-the-ground detection and coordination among public health experts. We do not take lightly this attack on the health of our constituents and the unceremonious termination of thousands of experts living in our communities who make us all safer.”

The Boston Regional Office property is desirable real estate and appeared on an early list of properties Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) group wished to “auction off”, raising questions about whether this action has ulterior motives – enabling Trump acolytes to cash in on real estate deals while ordinary Americans suffer from loss of services. The Trump Administration has shown a complete disregard for Americans’ needs, closing Social Security offices and curtailing customer service. This RO closure is just another effort to make it more difficult for our constituents to access the health and safety protections they count on the federal government to provide.

The lawmakers are demanding detailed answers as to the basis of this decision, its effect on constituent health, and how HHS will continue serving individuals in the region. They request answers to the following questions by April 18:

• Please provide a list of each division within the Boston RO that was eliminated, a description of its core functions, a summary of staff expertise, program staff caseloads for each overseen program at the time of closing, and all documentation justifying the Department’s decision to close each division within the RO.
• Please provide the Department’s analysis of the impact this regional closure will have on costs and health outcomes for the 15 million residents of New England, as well as the local economy.
• Please provide a detailed analysis of how the remaining five ROs will take over the responsibilities of the Boston RO, including total caseloads, in beneficiaries served and dollars managed, for the staff taking over New England responsibilities, and any anticipated hirings or training to offset the caseload inundation and loss of regional expertise.
• Please provide a detailed analysis of anyways responsibilities of the Boston RO which will be absorbed by HHS headquarters, including the current and new responsibilities of any headquarters staff assuming responsibilities and any anticipated hirings to offset the caseload inundation and loss of regional expertise.
• Please provide a detailed analysis of the anticipated additional wait times for services previously provided by staff at the Region 1 RO, such as the approval of Medicaid State Plan Amendments, enrollments of new providers into Medicare, surveys of nursing homes, child care licensing inspections, state plan approvals, and cost allocation agreements.
• Please explain the Administration’s plan for the now-vacant real estate that previously housed the Boston RO.

Congresswoman Pressley has been a leading voice in Congress speaking out against Elon Musk and Donald Trump’s unprecedented assault on our democracy and federal agencies, and she has been a steadfast advocate for protecting the essential services that federal workers and agencies provide.

• On April 9, 2025, Rep. Pressley led lawmakers in sending a letter to Trump’s trade official demanding he resign from holding multiple positions with clear conflicts of interest that would further harm federal workers.
• On March 28, 2025, Rep. Pressley issued a statement slamming Trump’s executive order to end collective bargaining rights for hundreds of thousands of federal employees.
• On March 21, 2025, Rep. Pressley led Massachusetts lawmakers in a letter to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) sharply criticizing and demanding answers about the impact of the Musk-Trump Administration’s mass firings of federal workers in Massachusetts.
• On March 11, 2025, Rep. Pressley spoke out against the U.S. Department of Education’s mass layoffs of over 1,300 workers, which effectively guts the agency.
• On March 11, 2025, Rep. Pressley voted against Republicans’ shameful government budget bill, which would harm vulnerable families and provide a blank check for Elon Musk and Donald Trump to continue their unprecedented assault on our democracy. She later issued a statement condemning its final passage in the Senate.
• On March 11, 2025, Rep. Pressley joined 13 of her colleagues on a letter to the Department of Homeland Security demanding answers and the immediate release of Columbia student Mahmoud Khalil, whose illegal abduction is an attack on his constitutional right to free speech and due process.
• On March 4, 2025, Rep. Pressley walked out of the House chamber in protest during Donald Trump’s presidential joint address to Congress.
• On March 4, 2025, Rep. Pressley welcomed Claire Bergstresser, an Everett constituent, dedicated public servant, AFGE union member, and former HUD worker who was unjustly terminated as part of Musk and Trump’s assault on federal agencies as her guest to the presidential joint address to Congress.
• On February 28, 2025, Rep. Pressley led 85 lawmakers in a letter urging the Office of Special Counsel to immediate reinstate and expand protections for all unfairly fired federal workers.
• On February 28, 2025, Rep. Pressley joined over 200 Democrats in filing an amicus brief defending the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau before a U.S. District Court.
• On February 26, 2025, in a House Oversight Committee hearing, Rep. Pressley discussed what true government efficiency looks like and denounced Elon Musk and Donald Trump for utilizing DOGE to gut the essential services that keep people safe, fed, and housed.
• On February 25, 2025, in a House Oversight Committee hearing, Rep. Pressley condemned Elon Musk’s abuse of government efficiency through the fraudulent Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
• On February 25, 2025, Rep. Pressley delivered a floor speech in which she railed against Republicans’ cruel budget resolution that would slash Medicaid by nearly $1 trillion.
• On February 20, 2025, Rep. Pressley and her Haiti Caucus Co-Chairs issued a statement condemning the Trump Administration’s decision to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haiti.
• On February 13, 2025, in a House Financial Services Committee hearing, Rep. Pressley emphasized the critical role of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) in safeguarding consumers and sharply criticized Donald Trump and Elon Musk for halting the critical work of the agency.
• On February 10, 2025, Rep. Pressley rallied with Senator Elizabeth Warren, Ranking Member Maxine Waters, and advocates to protest Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s unlawful takeover of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)
• On February 11, 2025, in a House Financial Services Committee hearing, Rep. Pressley criticized the Trump-Musk administration for halting the critical work of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) with crypto scams on the rise.
• On February 10, 2025, Rep. Pressley issued a statement slamming the Trump Administration’s harmful cuts to National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding to support hospitals, universities, and research institutions conducting lifesaving research.
• On February 10, 2025, as Trump and Musk threaten to dismantle the essential work of the U.S. Department of Education, Rep.  Pressley delivered a powerful floor speech to affirm the role of public education in American democracy.
• On February 6, 2025, in a House Oversight Committee hearing, Rep. Pressley delivered a powerful rebuke of Republicans’ efforts to gut diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and eliminate essential services for vulnerable communities.
• On February 5, 2025, Rep. Pressley rallied outside the U.S. Department of Treasury to protest Elon Musk’s unlawful assault on federal agencies and our democracy.
• On January 30, 2025, Rep. Pressley slammed Donald Trump for blaming the tragic plane crash at Reagan National Airport, which killed over 60 people, including some families from Massachusetts, on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
• In January 2025, Rep. Pressley issued a statement slamming Trump’s illegal freeze on federal grants and loans and its harmful impact on vulnerable communities.
• On January 23, 2025, Rep. Pressley delivered an impassioned floor speech condemning Republicans’ cruel anti-abortion bill that criminalizes providers and denies families care.
• On January 23, 2025, Rep. Pressley joined her colleagues to reintroduce the Neighbors Not Enemies Act, a bill to repeal an outdated law that has been used to target innocent immigrants without due process rights.
• On January 22, 2025, Rep. Pressley issued a statement condemning the Trump Administration’s harmful executive actions on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).

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