March 5, 2022

Dear Friends,

On Tuesday night, President Biden delivered a powerful message of unity and hope to the American people. He spoke truthfully about the many challenges that face our nation and world during these unprecedented times and detailed the immediate actions his administration is taking to address those challenges, including:

• Rallying our allies to stand against Russia’s unprovoked, premeditated attack on Ukraine, imposing crippling sanctions on Vladimir Putin and his allies, and supporting the Ukrainian people in defense of democracy and global peace;
• Renewing the call for immediate action to address the climate crisis and building out America’s clean energy infrastructure; and
• Addressing the strain of inflation on Americans and delivering a plan of action to combat rising prices and drive down energy costs, child and elder care, and prescription drugs for families.

In addition to this critical plan on how to address these urgent issues, it is also important to reflect on just how far we have come in the last year. Under the President’s strong leadership, we were able to advance a lifeline to support our communities through this COVID-19 pandemic and navigate safely to a new normal.

I was proud to support this pandemic recovery by voting on the American Rescue Plan. With this rescue, we:

• Established a national vaccination effort to get hundreds of millions of Americans access to a safe, free vaccine;
• Provided support to safely reopen schools and get children back in the classroom;
• Kept small businesses afloat with funding through the Restaurant Revitalization Fund, Paycheck Protection Program, Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG) program, and more; and
• Lifted half of all children out of poverty with the Child Tax Credit expansion benefit.

Along with this COVID-19 relief, we also passed the historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to repair America’s crumbling infrastructure, including fixing our bridges, roads, and ports, ensuring clean water for every child and advancing developments in clean energy. These are huge victories for the American people, and while I am proud of these achievements, the President and I both believe that our work is far from over.

I stand ready to build upon the successes of 2021 with the advancement of legislation to create American jobs, bolster American competitiveness, fix our supply chain issues, grow our 21^st century economy, and address the climate crisis with the urgency our planet requires.

Of particular importance, I agree with the President’s call to combat the devastating opioid crisis and remove barriers in addiction treatment access: a call that is directly addressed in my bipartisan Mainstreeting Addiction Treatment Act.

As I continue my work alongside President Biden in Washington, I am most thankful for your continued strength and courage during these unprecedented times. It is my honor to represent you, and I will not stop fighting to advance meaningful legislation that makes a positive difference in your lives and the lives of every American.

As your representative in Congress—I want to hear from you. If you would like to share your thoughts regarding the President’s State of the Union address, please respond to the survey linked below:

(click survey image to open in a web browser)

As always, thank you for reading.

Your friend,

DID YOU KNOW?

My office and I are working to make sure you remain informed with the latest updates and recommendations from federal agencies. With that in mind, here is some information from the SSA that may be of interest to you:

• In an outreach campaign to raise public awareness of Social Security scams, the Inspector General for the Social Security Administration (SSA) has designated March 10, 2022 as National “Slam the Scam” Day.
• In 2021, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) received over 396,000 complaints of government imposter scams.  Nearly 9% said they lost money to a scammer—more than $442 million.  
• To prevent further losses, the SSA urges everyone to use caution when receiving calls from someone claiming to be from a government agency by following these tips.
• The SSA will NEVER:
  • Threaten arrest or legal action if someone does not immediately send money to resolve an overpayment.
  • Promise to increase benefits or resolve identity theft issues for a fee or by moving money into a protected account.
  • Require payment with a retail gift card, prepaid debit card, cryptocurrency, wire transfer, internet currency, or by mailing cash.
  • Send text or email messages that contain personal information.
• Hang up on suspicious calls from “government officials” calling about a problem with your Social Security number or account, and report Social Security scams to OIG.SSA.GOV.
• For more on how to avoid getting scammed check out this SSA Scam Alert infographic.