WE MUST CONTINUE TO GIVE AMERICANS THE SUPPORT NEEDED TO WEATHER THIS STORM 

Dear Friends,

This week has made clear that our battle against COVID-19 is far from over. New infections have  skyrocketed past our previous single-day record, and public health experts in the Trump Administration now believe that the number of Americans who have contracted the virus could be 10 times more than the total we have officially recorded.

Many of our community members are hurting right now, whether struggling on unemployment, fighting to save their small business, or worrying about their health, their loved ones and what the future may bring.

Despite recent setbacks, I continue to fight to ensure Congress delivers the resources and support our Capital Region needs to weather this storm.

For several years now, I have worked to streamline, improve and expand access to broadband internet service especially for communities that are still left out. For years the Federal Communications Commission has claimed that everyone in New York has sufficient coverage, so earlier this year I delivered a letter to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai with the firsthand accounts of many constituents who cannot get that service.

This crisis has made the need for broadband service far greater, whether for students and teachers, business owners, doctors and nurses, or the countless others who have had to reinvent our jobs for the sake of the health and safety of those around them. I am pleased to share that we were able to authorize the Federal Communications Commission through the CARES Act to award funds to hundreds of health care providers across the state including  $61,515 for Saratoga Hospital and $131,261 for Ellis Medicine to expand their telehealth services.

The impact of this crisis goes far beyond healthcare and broadband. That’s why our CARES Act included economic stabilization grants to support essential operations at more than 300 cultural institutions across the country, including $30,000 in funding to Historic Cherry Hill in Albany, $46,819 to Union College in Schenectady, and more than $1 million in funding for the New York Council for the Humanities.

We have achieved much already, but the road ahead remains long and we have work to do. My colleagues in the House and I put a powerful piece of legislation together called the Heroes Act to provide critical assistance including more than $1.3 billion in crisis-response aid for New York’s Capital Region to fund comprehensive testing and tracing and make sure state and local services can continue—and keep our firefighters, police officers, EMTs and countless other essential workers on the job when we need them most.

The Senate needs to move the Heroes Act—or whatever satisfactory solution they choose—forward, but we cannot afford to wait forever. This week my colleagues and I forged ahead with the introduction of a bold, transformative infrastructure package: H.R.2, the Moving Forward Act. This sweeping legislation lays the foundation for America’s clean, competitive recovery by investing more than $1.5 trillion to rebuild and improve America’s critical infrastructure while creating millions of good-paying jobs, combatting the climate crisis and addressing the needs and disparities of communities throughout America. Among these investments are:

• Nearly $500 billion for our highways, bridges, transit, rail, airports, ports and harbors to improve safety, reduce gridlock and put the U.S. on a path toward zero emissions
• Investments in our children’s futures by helping safely reopen and rebuild schools with a $130 billion in funding for school infrastructure targeted at high-poverty schools.
• More than $70 billion to modernize our energy infrastructure for a clean energy future.
• More than $100 billion to reduce housing inequality, create jobs, stimulate the economy, improve living conditions and increase environmental sustainability.
• $100 billion investment in broadband services, especially targeting broadband internet infrastructure in unserved and underserved communities, prioritizing those with persistent poverty.
• $30 billion to upgrade our hospitals and health care infrastructure to increase capacity and strengthen care, help community health centers respond to COVID-19 and better prepare for public health emergencies.

We have a long road ahead, and none of this will be easy. We have seen the high price states are paying for ramping up economic activity prematurely and failing to invest in testing and tracing. If we don’t get this critical moment right, our economy will suffer an even greater backlash and countless more precious lives will be needlessly lost. However, if we do get it right and avoid the mistakes of our recent past, we can regain our footing and our pride, get Americans back to work safely, and modernize our infrastructure and our economy to achieve a cleaner, more resilient, more competitive, and more just nation overall.

As we move forward in our COVID-19 response, please know how grateful I am for your courage and resilience over these difficult months. We have come a long way, and while we continue to face challenges, I know we will get through this together. 

DID YOU KNOW?

Throughout this pandemic, my office and I have worked to make sure you remain informed with the latest updates and recommendations on any and all COVID-19 related topics. With that in mind here is some information that may be of interest to you:

•  Debt relief is available for existing SBA loans: Borrowers don’t need to take any action to benefit from the debt relief that has been authorized by Congress. If your loan is in normal servicing, debt relief is automatic. Lenders have been instructed on the process to correctly report eligible loan payments to SBA so that SBA can remit payment to the lender on behalf of the borrower. Lenders have also been instructed not to collect payments from borrowers during the covered relief period that began on March 27, and if they do receive payment to notify the borrower of the option to either return the payment or apply it to principal. Borrowers should contact their lender if it’s unclear that the debt relief payments are being applied correctly. If the lender is confused or needs assistance, they should contact SBA for guidance.