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Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Nanette Diaz Barragán (CA-44)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  

April 25, 2026

Contact: Jin.Choi@mail.house.gov

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Representative Nanette Barragán (CA-44) released the following statement:  

“At White House Correspondents Dinner as guest of C-SPAN and it’s absolute chaos. Heard the shots and had to get under our table.

Grateful for the immediate response from the USSS and security as they worked to apprehend the shooter and secure the area. 

Political violence is never, EVER the answer. It must end.”

FOR PHOTOS AND VIDEOS, CLICK HERE.

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Jimmy Gomez (CA-34)

LOS ANGELES, CA – Today, U.S. Rep. Jimmy Gomez (CA-34) spoke at the Federal Courthouse for the newly renamed Felicitas and Gonzalo Méndez U.S. Courthouse in Downtown Los Angeles, honoring the legacy of the Méndez family and their fight for school desegregation. In 2024, Rep. Gomez secured passage of legislation renaming the federal courthouse after Felicitas and Gonzalo Méndez, whose landmark case helped end school segregation in California and paved the way for broader civil rights victories nationwide. 

“I want to acknowledge the Méndez, Estrada, Guzman, Palomino, and Ramirez families, whose courage and sacrifice helped change the course of American history,” said Rep. Gomez. 

“Today, we gathered to honor families whose bravery transformed our nation. For too long, their story was overlooked in our history books, even though their fight helped lay the foundation for one of the most important civil rights victories in American history.” 

“That is why I was proud to lead the legislation in Congress to rename this courthouse in honor of Felicitas and Gonzalo Méndez.” 

The Méndez family fought alongside the Ramirez, Estrada, Guzman, and Palomino families in the landmark 1947 federal court case Méndez v. Westminster that led to the end of segregation in California schools. This case laid the groundwork for Brown v. Board of Education, which desegregated schools nationwide. 

Gomez introduced legislation that was included in the Thomas R. Carper Water Resources Development Act of 2024 which was signed into law by President Biden, making the Felicitas and Gonzalo Méndez U.S. Courthouse the first federal courthouse in history named after a Latina. 

As a member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and the son of Mexican immigrants, the courthouse naming is personal to Gomez. “Today is a recognition of people being at the center of changing our laws and the course of our nation’s history. When Felicitas and Gonzalo Méndez and four other courageous families challenged segregation in California schools more than seven decades ago, they not only stood up for their own children, but for me, my three-year-old son, and generations of students of color,” said Rep. Gomez

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Joaquin Castro (20th District of Texas)

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Jerrold Nadler (10th District of New York)

New York, N.Y.  – Today, Congressman Jerrold Nadler (NY-12) visited the Early Childhood Center at Lenox Hill Neighborhood House to celebrate continued federal funding for their award-winning Head Start program that serves NY-12 children and families. 

Congressman Nadler secured $1 million in community grant funding during the Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations for the Early Childhood Center. He continues to be an outspoken advocate for increased funding for Head Start and Early Head Start Programs in NY-12 and nationwide. 

“Every child deserves the opportunity to learn and grow with their peers, regardless of their family’s income status,” said Congressman Nadler. “Head Start programs are critical to secure these opportunities for children and families in New York City and across the U.S. These investments in early education address the financial burden of childcare and empower guardians to work while their children learn and play in safe environments. It was a pleasure to see the Lenox Hill Neighborhood House Head Start Program in action and meet with the passionate team that supports NY-12’s children and families every day.”

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Debbie Dingell (12th District of Michigan)

U.S. Representative Debbie Dingell (D-MI-06) urged the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to immediately release federal funds for First Step Domestic and Sexual Violence Services. In a letter to the agency, Congresswoman Dingell rejected the administration’s claims of the funds as “fraud, waste, and abuse” and emphasized that continued delays have forced shelter closures and reduced lifesaving services for survivors across Southeast Michigan.

A copy of the letter can be found HERE and text is below:

Dear Mr. Fenton:

This letter is regarding the unsatisfactory and disappointing response to the letter I sent on December 18, 2025 regarding the status of Emergency Food and Shelter Program (ESFP) funding for First Step Domestic and Sexual Violence Services, specifically the claim that this funding is being reviewed in the interest of rooting out “fraud, waste, and abuse” to “deliver accountability for the American taxpayers.”

The funding authorized through EFSP is essential. It not only provides financial support for basic necessities but allows victim service providers who serve survivors of domestic violence, such as First Step, to continue funding lifesaving services for survivors across Southeast Michigan. The EFSP program funds are not waste, fraud, or abuse; these funds create the foundation for services rooted in comfort, stability, and nourishment during a survivor’s healing journey.

Despite the importance of these funds, organizations are still unable to access them. Since August of 2025, my staff has worked to obtain information on the status of ESFP funds and other critical funding that supports survivors without resolution. The continued lapse in funding has created a precarious financial situation for victim service providers resulting in a reduction of services, program instability, and shelter closures.

Additional administrative burden in the name of addressing “fraud, waste and abuse” has severely exacerbated the financial challenges facing organizations who provide critical resources and whose budgets and capacity are already strained.

Instead of supporting survivors of domestic violence, actions that delay funding they depend on and lack clarity will only make it more difficult for them to seek safety and justice. I urge you to take measures to ensure EFSP grant funding is released with a clear timeline for disbursement.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Debbie Dingell (12th District of Michigan)

U.S. Representative Debbie Dingell (D-MI-06) urged the U.S. Department of Education (ED) to address delays in processing Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Buyback applications, some of which have sat undecided for over a year. In a letter to the department, Congresswoman Dingell highlighted the program’s role in retaining qualified public servants and called for coordinated efforts to ensure the 88,000 pending applicants receive timely decisions. 

A copy of the letter can be found HERE and text is below:

Dear Secretary McMahon:

This letter is regarding the delays experienced by applicants to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Buyback. As a strong supporter of PSLF and our public servants, I am 

concerned by reports I have heard from my constituents of applications sitting without a decision for over a year.

The PSLF program provides essential support to eligible public servants by forgiving the remaining balance of their Direct Loan program student loans, so long as they meet the program 

requirements. PSLF Buyback provides opportunities for borrowers to “buy back” deferred or forborne monthly payments, allowing borrowers to make previously ineligible periods of 

deferment or forbearance qualifying monthly payments under PSLF. 

This program helps us retain qualified and competent public servants throughout our government and in the nonprofit sector by rewarding workers for their years of service. However, as of April 30, 2026, 88,000 PSLF Buyback applications were pending. In that same month, 4,790 applications were received and 6,870 applications were determined. While it is good that your department is making progress towards the backlog, there is still a long list of public servants waiting for the financial security they were promised.

I was pleased by the recent announcement that the Department of Education’s Office of Federal Student Aid is looking to hire 334 full-time employees by next year, a 45% increase from 

staffing levels as of April 2026 and increasing total staffing to 1,065 full-time employees.

However, even with successfully completing this hiring goal, the Office of Federal Student Aid would still be well under the staffing levels of the previous administration when staffing was as high as 1,444 full-time employees.I remain concerned by this administration’s propensity to push public servants out of federal work, including through the March 2025 Reduction in Force (RIF) only to have to hire workers for those same positions later on who are then faced with significant backlogs. The Office of Federal Student Aid is no exception.

I am hopeful we can work together to ensure that our public servants long-awaited answers to their applications for PSLF. Thank you for your consideration in this matter and I look forward to receiving a response.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Joe Wilson (2nd District of South Carolina)

Washington, DC – Representatives Joe Wilson (R-SC) and Julie Johnson (D-TX), introduced the bipartisan Fostering Effective Diagnosis and Treatment for Underserved Populations (FED UP) with Bleeding Disorders Act of 2026. The legislation will create increased research opportunities for bleeding disorders among underserved populations.

“So many women of South Carolina are negatively impacted by bleeding disorders, between insurance companies failing to prioritize their treatment, and the challenges of rural healthcare, enough obstacles to treatment already exist,” said Congressman Wilson. “There is no reason for a lack of research to be contributing to the bleeding disorder population. Everyone deserves timely and proper treatment, especially those most impacted by a disorder.”

“It takes an average of 16 years for a woman with a bleeding disorder to receive a proper diagnosis. That means countless women in Texas and across the United States are living with an undiagnosed condition and are unable to get the care and treatment they need during injury, surgery, trauma, menstruation, or childbirth,” said Congresswoman Johnson. “For too long, bleeding disorders were wrongly seen as conditions that only affect men, which has led to women and girls often being excluded from clinical research. As a result, they face higher rates of pregnancy complications, hospitalizations, and mortality, and are too often pushed toward unnecessary hysterectomies.”

“That’s why I fought to protect funding for the programs that help address bleeding disorders and pushed back against the administration’s reckless cuts,” Johnson continued. “It’s also why I worked alongside the incredible advocates at the National Bleeding Disorders Foundation and the Texas Bleeding Disorders Coalition to advance long-term solutions that will improve timely diagnosis and care.

Specifically, this bill will direct that the Secretary of Health and Human Services conduct an interagency review of barriers to access and propose recommendations; make reports publicly available for transparency and accountability; conduct a public education and awareness campaign for women and girls with bleeding disorders; and much more.

“The National Bleeding Disorders Foundation is grateful to Representatives Johnson and Wilson for their leadership on the FED UP with Bleeding Disorders Act. For far too long, women and girls with bleeding disorders have been blocked from timely diagnosis, comprehensive care, and inclusion in clinical research,” said Dawn Rotellini, Chief Operating Officer of the National Bleeding Disorders Foundation. “This legislation will break down some of those barriers and will help provide the next generation of women and girls with a clearer, speedier path to diagnosis, access to appropriate medical treatment and care, and recognition of their lived experiences. This topic is a priority for NBDF, and we look forward to working with Congress to advance this important piece of legislation.” 

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

Rep. Beyer, who represents a Northern Virginia district in the U.S. House that includes Arlington National Cemetery, today urged Trump Administration officials to provide greater transparency to the public about potential traffic impacts of President Trump’s proposed “triumphal arch.” Trump appointees on the Commission of Fine Arts recently voted to approve designs for the proposed 250-foot structure, which the President is seeking to build on a traffic circle between Arlington National Cemetery and Arlington Memorial Bridge.

Beyer asked Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum and Acting Director of the National Park Service Jessica Bowron to share “copies of traffic studies and any other documentation available regarding plans that the Department of the Interior and National Park Service have undertaken with respect to transportation impacts from President Trump’s arch proposal.”

He wrote:

“On May 21, the Commission of Fine Arts voted to approve designs for a 250-foot arch to be built near Arlington National Cemetery, in the circle on Lady Bird Johnson Park. I write to express my grave concerns about the impacts on traffic that this project will have on my Northern Virginia constituents, and to request copies of your plans and studies for coping with the transportation disruption generated by the proposed construction.

“With the size of the project and the site’s location between Arlington Memorial Bridge and Arlington National Cemetery, the proposed construction would have significant traffic impacts on my Northern Virginia constituents.

…

“I write, therefore, to request copies of traffic studies and any other documentation available regarding plans that the Department of the Interior and National Park Service have undertaken with respect to transportation impacts from President Trump’s arch proposal. If no such studies or documentation exist, I urge you in the strongest possible terms to immediately address potential traffic impacts arising from this project.

“I request that you respond with the information requested and any relevant details before any further work on this project proceeds. Failure to produce plans for traffic impacts from this arch could, I fear, be widely interpreted as a sign of apathy or disorganization on the part of the Administration regarding the outsized local impacts of its decision-making. The public deserves transparency in this matter from their government.”

Text of Beyer’s letter follows below, and a signed copy is available here.

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Dear Secretary Burgum and Acting Director Bowron:

On May 21, the Commission of Fine Arts voted to approve designs for a 250-foot arch to be built near Arlington National Cemetery, in the circle on Lady Bird Johnson Park. I write to express my grave concerns about the impacts on traffic that this project will have on my Northern Virginia constituents, and to request copies of your plans and studies for coping with the transportation disruption generated by the proposed construction.

With the size of the project and the site’s location between Arlington Memorial Bridge and Arlington National Cemetery, the proposed construction would have significant traffic impacts on my Northern Virginia constituents. Major thoroughfares impacted include the George Washington Memorial Parkway, Washington Boulevard, Arlington Boulevard, as well as traffic to Arlington National Cemetery along Memorial Avenue and traffic on Arlington Memorial Bridge. Nearly 70,000 vehicles cross the bridge each day, most of which are from Virginia, and many more pass through the environs on their way through Northern Virginia.[1] These areas also have major pedestrian and bike pathways, including Mount Vernon Trail, one of the most heavily used multi-use trails in the country, in addition to vehicular traffic.[2]

Previous construction projects in this area, including the Arlington Memorial Bridge Rehabilitation from 2018-2020, caused significant traffic disruptions. One key difference between that renovation work and the proposed arch is that the former was undertaken by your agencies to protect the public from potentially fatal accidents or deterioration of this heavily used bridge, whereas the proposed arch is being built, according to President Trump, for himself personally.[3] My constituents and the residents and visitors who would be impacted by this project deserve consideration in this matter, and they deserve answers about how the actions of your departments would affect their lives.

I write, therefore, to request copies of traffic studies and any other documentation available regarding plans that the Department of the Interior and National Park Service have undertaken with respect to transportation impacts from President Trump’s arch proposal. If no such studies or documentation exist, I urge you in the strongest possible terms to immediately address potential traffic impacts arising from this project.

I request that you respond with the information requested and any relevant details before any further work on this project proceeds. Failure to produce plans for traffic impacts from this arch could, I fear, be widely interpreted as a sign of apathy or disorganization on the part of the Administration regarding the outsized local impacts of its decision-making. The public deserves transparency in this matter from their government.

Sincerely,

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

U.S. Reps. Don Beyer (D-VA) and Dina Titus (D-NV) today announced that they will introduce the Arlington National Cemetery Viewshed Protection Act this week to explicitly prohibit construction of President Trump’s proposed “triumphal arch” outside Arlington National Cemetery. Their bill comes in the wake of a vote by Trump appointees on the Commission of Fine Arts to approve designs for the project.

Trump’s arch proposal relies on illegal manipulations of funding without congressional authorization and violates the Commemorative Works Act. As the Trump Administration makes spurious, absurd arguments to support proceeding with construction, this legislation would explicitly prohibit and defund this and any similar projects.

Rep. Beyer who represents a Northern Virginia district in the U.S. House that includes Arlington National Cemetery (ANC), and whose parents, grandparents, and sister are buried at ANC, said:

“Arlington National Cemetery is sacred ground, the resting place for some of our nation’s greatest heroes. It is unthinkable that we would desecrate this hallowed space to build a monument to Donald Trump’s ego.

“Trump’s vanity project would waste taxpayer money, brazenly violate existing law, and become yet another vehicle for his corruption. The Administration has also given no consideration to potential harmful effects on the region including impacts on air safety and traffic on major roadways.

“Worst of all, Trump is not trying to build this arch to commemorate national heroes, servicemembers who lie in Arlington National Cemetery, or to celebrate freedom. He did not dedicate it to the American people or our country’s greatness. Asked who this arch is for, Trump said, simply: ‘me.’ Congress must draw the line at dishonoring our fallen with such naked displays of narcissism, and I therefore call on all members of both parties to join our efforts to block this arch.”

Rep. Dina Titus, Co-Chair of the Congressional Humanities Caucus, who previously led challenges to the Trump Administration’s illegal schemes to fund the arch using the National Endowment for the Humanities budget, said:

“As President Trump strips away the necessary safety nets from Americans who are struggling to afford their basic needs like groceries and healthcare, he builds his unauthorized, grandiose Triumphal Arch. While destroying historical monuments and artifacts important to our American identity, he is erecting monuments to honor himself.

“I am fighting this abuse of taxpayer dollars with Congressman Beyer by introducing legislation that would clearly prohibit President Trump from using federal funds for pet projects like this one. The American people deserve a leader who is responsibly using federal funding for critical government services, not for self-promotion.”

Trump’s proposed arch is plainly illegal under the Commemorative Works Act, which requires congressional approval for memorials on federal land in or near D.C. Underlining that the Arch is not approved by Congress as required by law, the Arlington National Cemetery Viewshed Protection Act would:

• Explicitly prohibit construction of a triumphal arch within Lady Bird Johnson Park, the small island between Arlington Memorial Cemetery and the Potomac River;
• Permanently prohibit the use of federal funds for such an arch; and
• Prohibit the construction of such an arch or similarly-disruptive and non-Congressionally approved structures on any National Park Service lands within the National Capital Region.

In addition to Beyer and Titus, the bill will be cosponsored by Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC) and U.S. Representatives Robert Garcia (CA), Suhas Subramanyam (VA), Bobby Scott (VA), Dan Goldman (NY), Pramila Jayapal (WA), Steve Cohen (TN), Jasmine Crockett (TX), Danny Davis (IL), Dianna DeGette (CO), Lois Frankel (FL), John Larson (CT), Stephen Lynch (MA), Betty McCollum (MN), Morgan McGarvey (KY), Kevin Mullin (CA), Mike Quigley (IL), Mary Gay Scanlon (PA), Mark Takano (CA), Jill Tokuda (HI), Paul Tonko (NY), Rashida Tlaib (MI), and Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ).

The bill will be introduced during this Friday’s pro forma session of the House; draft text is available here.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Morgan Griffith (R-VA)

Griffith Announces HHS Grants Worth More Than $2.86 Million to Area Health Centers