Congresswomen Suzan DelBene (WA-01) and Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) led 25 members of Congress today in demanding that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ban preferential access to COVID-19 vaccines while establishing greater accountability measures. The lawmakers’ letter to HHS Acting Secretary Norris Cochran also requested responses to three questions related to preferential access and the inequitable distribution of the COVID-19 vaccines. “We write to raise concerns about repo...
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Today, Representatives Suzan DelBene (WA-01) and John Katko (NY-24) reintroduced the Internet of Things (IoT) Readiness Act, bipartisan legislation that would prepare the U.S. for the continued growth of IoT devices and devices that use 5G networks. IoT devices, ranging from fitness watches to sensors that monitor traffic, require significant spectrum capacity so that information, such as time, location, and temperature, can be transmitted to and from other devices. Spectrum is a limited resourc...
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Today, Representatives Suzan DelBene (WA-01), Rosa DeLauro (CT-03), and Ritchie Torres (NY-15) reintroduced the American Family Act, legislation to permanently expand and improve the Child Tax Credit (CTC) and make it a dramatically more effective tool for reducing child poverty and supporting families with kids. President Biden’s American Rescue Plan includes one year of an expanded and improved CTC modeled after the American Family Act. The American Family Act would provide up to $300 per-mont...
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Today, Representatives Suzan DelBene (WA-01) and Don Young (AK-AL) introduced legislation to bring tax parity to meals provided to workers on certain fish processing vessels and remote fish processing facilities. The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act reduced the tax deduction for employer-provided meals to 50% and eliminates the deduction altogether after 2025. The law still allows for 100% deductibility for meals when they are required by federal law but that does not apply to the fishing industry. Ho...
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As tech companies and public health agencies deploy new tools to fight the spread of COVID-19 – including contact tracing apps, digital monitoring, home tests, and vaccine appointment booking – Representatives Suzan DelBene (WA-01), Anna Eshoo (CA-18), and Jan Schakowsky (IL-09) and Senators Richard Blumenthal (CT) and Mark Warner (VA) introduced the Public Health Emergency Privacy Act to set strong and enforceable privacy and data security rights for health information. After decades of data mi...
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Today, the New Democrat Coalition (NDC), led by NDC Leadership Members, unveiled its First 100 Days Agenda. Through this agenda, the Coalition will take actionable steps to end the pandemic, create jobs, and solve the challenges of the 21st Century. The NDC will fight for durable progress on our nation’s most pressing issues, including ending the pandemic, spurring equitable economic growth and opportunities, tackling climate change, modernizing our infrastructure, protecting and expanding affor...
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Today, the New Democrat Coalition (NDC) sent a letter to President Joe Biden, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer urging action on a slate of bold, innovative policies to help end the pandemic and rebuild robust economic growth and opportunity that works for every American. The letter reads: “The NDC proposals have clear alignment with President Biden and Vice President Harris’s American Rescue Plan and would build on the foundation of House Democrats’ core relief and recovery ...
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Congresswoman Suzan DelBene (WA-01) issued the following statement on the inauguration of Joseph R. Biden, Jr. as President of the United States and Kamala D. Harris as Vice President of the United States. “Today begins a new chapter in American history. After a stormy, unpredictable, and at times dangerous period, today brings new light and hope for our future. This will be a future we can all share in. President Biden pledged to be a leader for all of America, just as the presidency was intend...
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Today Rep. Don Beyer (VA-08), incoming Chair of the Joint Economic Committee, and New Democrat Coalition (NDC) Chair Suzan DelBene (WA-01) and NDC Chair-Emeritus Rep. Derek Kilmer (WA-06), expressed their delight at President-elect Biden’s game-changing support for automatic stabilizers, tying unemployment benefits to pandemic and economic conditions. In the summer of 2020, Beyer and New Democrat Coalition leaders put forth a legislative proposal to automatically trigger continued and adjusted e...
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New Democrat Coalition Chair Suzan DelBene (WA-01) issued the following statement on the incoming Biden-Harris Administration’s legislative package to fund vaccinations and provide immediate, direct economic relief to working families and communities bearing the brunt of the COVID-19 crisis: “New Dems welcome the release of President-elect Biden’s legislative package and look forward to achieving our shared priorities with the incoming administration. Americans need additional aid and stimulus a...
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