Congresswoman Suzan DelBene represents Washington’s 1st Congressional District, which spans from northeast King County to the Canadian border and includes parts of King, Snohomish, Skagit, and Whatcom counties.
First sworn into the House of Representatives in November 2012, Suzan brings a unique voice to the nation’s capital with more than two decades of experience as a successful technology entrepreneur and business leader.
Suzan takes on a wide range of challenges both in Congress and in the 1st District. She is a leader on issues of technology, health care, trade, taxes, environmental conservation, and agriculture, and is a champion for working families.
Washington’s 1st Congressional District has a thriving agriculture industry that plays a key role in our local economy. Our district has some of the most fertile agricultural land in the Pacific Northwest and more than 3,000 farms that grow a large variety of fruits, vegetables, and seeds. We are also home to a number of dairy farms.
As a former member of the House Committee on Agriculture and the former Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Biotechnology, Horticulture and Research, I am a tireless advocate for our local farmers and food producers. I will fight for programs that support specialty and organic crops, cutting edge research, the conservation of our forests, trade, and job-creating investments that ensure we have a vibrant local agricultural industry in western Washington. I currently serve on the Ways and Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over tax policy and trade, two critical areas that support the agriculture economy.
In 2019, I helped pass the United-States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), which provides a stable open marketplace for farmers and businesses across the country and in our region. The agreement both eliminates a rule in British Columbia that requires imported wines to be placed in a separate part of grocery stores and helps dairy farmers in our region export products to Canada. During the 116th Congress, I also underscored the need for further agricultural research through a bipartisan letter.
As a co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional Dairy Caucus, I will continue fighting for market opportunities and economic security for our local dairy producers across the state. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the agricultural industry has been hit hard. That is why I joined the Congressional Dairy Caucus in calling on the USDA to provide more robust support to farmers and food producers affected financially by this crisis.
I have also been a strong advocate for the our timber towns, which had seen major job losses across our region in recent years. Key provisions in my Timber Innovation Act were passed in the 2019 Farm Bill, supporting the growth of innovative green building materials (like cross laminated timber) within the industry through investment and research. Innovation, job growth, and sustainable agricultural practices can propel the nation forward as a leader in sustainable agriculture.
Farmers and agriculture producers look to Congress to create sound food policy, and they deserve the clarity that will enable them to plan for the future. I will continue fighting to ensure that our local farmers and food producers have a strong voice in Congress.
I believe Congress must come together in a bipartisan way to find long-term budget solutions that invest in programs that help working families, create jobs, support a competitive American workforce, protect the promise of Social Security and Medicare, and rebuild an economy that works for everyone. To meet this goal, we should be making strategic investments in areas like education, research, clean energy, and infrastructure built for the 21st century.
Too often, Congress has kicked the can down the road, setting up future fiscal crises. As a former businesswoman, I understand that no business would budget just two or three months in advance. They plan for years at a time and work to minimize every uncertainty.
Congress needs to put an end to this inefficient cycle of budgeting and get back to passing appropriations bills that cover the full fiscal year. The difficult budget problems we face require innovative thinking. That’s why I’m working with my colleagues to craft new solutions that will provide us a great return on our investments. Strong economic growth can be achieved only when every American has the opportunity to succeed.
It is our responsibility to ensure every child in the United States has access to a world-class education, no matter where they live or how much money their family makes. In classrooms in our communities, teachers and administrators are doing incredible work to educate our kids and prepare them to succeed, especially in the challenging teaching environment created by COVID-19. However, Congress needs to do more to support their work. To guarantee all students can succeed, we must invest in helping our most vulnerable students, households with limited internet access, and our hard working educators.
We should be forward-looking as technological advancements, like artificial intelligence and automation, dramatically shift how our economy works. To prepare our children for the jobs of tomorrow, we must expand computer science education, foster innovative and creative learning, develop critical thinking skills, and support STEAM education. We also need to bring our classrooms into the 21st century by deploying high-speed broadband and Wi-Fi in every school, particularly in rural and tribal communities.
Finally, I remain committed to bringing down the cost of higher education so everyone has access to a quality college education. The rising cost of higher education in America poses serious challenges to millions of middle-class families who are being forced to take out extremely burdensome loans to pay for tuition, fees, textbooks, and housing.
That’s why I introduced and fought to pass the Faster Access for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) Act, which makes it easier to apply for federal financial aid. This law also provides $250 million annually for historically black colleges and universities as well as minority-serving institutions across the country. I’m also the champion of the Electronic Books Opening Opportunity for Knowledge Act, which would increase access to low-cost or free digital course materials and help college students save money on textbooks.
Our nation must build a new economy based on clean and renewable energy, such as solar, wind, hydro, and bio-based fuels while reducing our carbon emissions. Recent technological advancements have dramatically reduced the cost of producing clean energy making it more competitive with traditional fossil fuels. Clean energy technology creates jobs, reduces costs for businesses and families, strengthens our national security, and improves our standard of living.
In the 1st Congressional District, we have an educated workforce, advanced manufacturing, and a growing technology industry, all part of the foundation for a new and growing green economy if we put the right incentives in place. That’s why I’ve consistently supported programs that incentivize the use of renewable energy technologies like the Production Tax Credit and the Investment Tax Credit. During the previous Congress, I was also one of the lead sponsors of a resolution calling for more than 50 percent clean and carbon-free electricity by 2030.
Additionally, I worked with my colleagues on the Ways and Means Committee to draft the GREEN Act, which was included in the House’s Moving Forward Act in the 116th Congress. The legislation is a comprehensive approach to combating climate change using the tax code to incentivize renewable energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
I will continue to work with my colleagues to build a new green economy and find innovative solutions to address climate change for our energy independence, our health, and the health of future generations.
Climate change is a serious threat to our way of life, our economy, our children, and the future of our planet and we need to address it now. Congress must do more to combat this growing and urgent existential threat. We need to continue making new investments in a green America.
One of the first votes I took in the 116th Congress was to create the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis, which is a critical tool in highlighting this issue and bringing new solutions to the table. The select committee created the Climate Crisis Action Plan, which is a comprehensive set of policy recommendations for congressional action to reduce carbon pollution as quickly and aggressively as possible, make communities more resilient to the impacts of climate change, and build a durable and equitable clean energy economy.
As climate change continues to affect our environment, we must be prepared for the next natural disaster. I introduced the National Landslide Preparedness Act following the 2014 Oso landslide that killed 43 members of our community. The bill was signed into law in January 2021. It will help save lives, protect communities and property, and improve natural disaster emergency preparedness by targeting key gaps in science and mapping critical to understanding landslide hazards.
Conservation
The Pacific Northwest is home to some of our nation’s most cherished national forests, parks, mountains, and waterways. As someone who loves hiking and the outdoors, I often say with great pride that I represent the most beautiful congressional district in the country. Taking care of our natural resources and protecting our environment is critical to preserving the quality of life that we enjoy and want to preserve for the next generation.
Protecting our natural resources is not only good for our environment but good for our economy as well, generating $22.5 billion each year and creating 227,000 jobs in our state alone. However, sea levels are rising in our region, our oceans are becoming more acidic, and we are seeing an increase in insect outbreaks and tree diseases. We must craft policies that protect our environment and natural resources before it is too late.
I am a strong and vocal advocate for permanently reauthorizing the Land Water Conservation Fund, a conservation program that has invested $710 million in Washington projects. I’ve toured Land Water Conservation Fund projects like the North Creek Forest in Bothell, spoke on the House floor in support of the program, and sent letters to House leadership asking for full and permanent funding. As a result, in August 2020, the LWCF was permanently and fully funded at $900 million a year and will help protect our local parks for generations to come.
I will continue to make tackling climate change and preserving our public lands a priority in Congress so that future generations will be able to enjoy the Pacific Northwest as we do today.
I am committed to ensuring every American has affordable, quality health care. Over the past 10 years, the Affordable Care Act has made significant progress towards this goal despite ongoing attempts to undermine it. Since the law was enacted, more than 20 million Americans have gained health coverage, including 750,000 in Washington state, and the nation’s uninsured rate has been cut nearly in half. Americans with pre-existing conditions can no longer be discriminated against, annual and lifetime limits have been prohibited, women can’t be charged more for health care than men, and young adults can now stay on their parents’ plan until age 26.
No law is ever perfect, and I strongly believe that we can make improvements without compromising critical protections for the middle class. That’s why I am a strong supporter of efforts to strengthen the law to expand coverage and address the high cost of prescription drugs.
On the Ways and Means Committee, my colleagues and I put an end to surprise medical billing once and for all by creating a way for insurers and providers to handle billing disputes without harming patients. This shows that Congress can come together in a bipartisan way to address health care issues and should reinvigorate our aspiration to deliver for the American people.
Moving forward, we also need to boost our nation’s investments in medical research at the National Institutes of Health and other federal agencies to speed up the development of new cures, treatments, and vaccines. The speed at which we developed several COVID-19 vaccine candidates was remarkable and demonstrates that with the right resources researchers can make meaningful medical breakthroughs.
Finally, I firmly believe that women should be free to make their own medical decisions without interference from politicians or employers. As a leader of the House Pro-Choice Caucus, I will always be a strong proponent for women’s access to birth control and family planning services.
Since 2012, housing prices in King County have increased by nearly 120 percent. The cost of living has spiked across our region, leaving many workers and families with limited access to affordable housing.
The expensive Seattle-area housing market has placed mounting pressure on communities further north as more workers are getting priced out of the market. These forces are driving up housing costs throughout the 1st Congressional District, leaving some families with the choice of long, costly commutes or housing costs that consume most of their income. Homelessness and housing insecurity remain a fact of life in our region and we must address this crisis.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, over 11 million households across the country were already paying more than half of their income in rent, a number that continues to rise. That’s why I introduced the Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act, which would strengthen the low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) and create an estimated 400,000 more affordable housing units over the next 10 years. Since its enactment in 1986, LIHTC has encouraged private sector development of more than 3 million affordable housing units for low-income individuals and families.
Without access to affordable housing, many people are at significant risk of homelessness. Research also shows that homelessness disproportionately impacts veterans. With more than 40,000 veterans in the 1st District, we need to give veterans the ability to have a safe and affordable place to call home.
I am committed to fighting to ensure that every American has access to affordable, safe, and stable housing. Housing challenges impact everyone—local businesses trying to hire and retain a qualified workforce, our hardworking families and young Americans with hopes of starting a family, and seniors who have worked their whole lives to retire with dignity.
If we want to promote prosperity in our state and nation, we must put all ideas on the table. I will fight to make sure that we enact policies that ensure no American is left behind when it comes to having a place to call home
For too long, Congress has delayed addressing our broken immigration system. As a result, we are left with a deeply flawed system that is not working for our communities, businesses, immigrants, or families. There is both a moral and economic imperative that we reach a solution to this problem.
We need immigration reform that takes a balanced, responsible approach to securing our borders while recognizing the enormous contributions immigrants make to our nation. This means focusing our enforcement resources on those who pose a threat to public safety while honoring students and hardworking people adding value to our economy.
Comprehensive immigration reform should eliminate application backlogs, reunite families, and meet the demands of our economy. I strongly support an earned path to citizenship for those who are already here, otherwise following the law, working or going to school, or making positive contributions to their communities. We must ensure that American employers and entrepreneurs can attract and hire the workforce demanded by a highly competitive 21st Century economy. Our local employers, whether in technology, research, manufacturing, or agriculture, need an immigration system that works for them and helps create jobs.
Given Washington’s location as a northern border state, we cannot neglect issues concerning the flow of goods and people to and from Canada. During the COVID-19 pandemic, I have pushed Canadian and American governments to establish a special travel exemption for Point Roberts. Our border communities rely on our close relationship with Canada, and we must continue to work in unison to ensure the best interests of our communities.
With many families and local businesses struggling to adapt to a rapidly changing economy, my top priority in Congress is ensuring that every American can succeed by rebuilding the middle class, expanding opportunities, and investing in long-term economic growth and security.
Our nation continues to lead the world in innovation, productivity, and ingenuity, but too many Americans can't share in that success. That’s why I am engaging with small businesses, farmers, tribes, and families across the 1st District to identify where we are failing and what we can do to give workers of all backgrounds the tools they need to succeed.
Nowhere in the country is the economic impact of innovation and entrepreneurship more visible than in the 1st District, where our local industries, ranging from aerospace, manufacturing, high-tech, agriculture, clean energy, and health care are driving the economy forward. Our district helps build the world’s best airplanes, grows the finest food, develops breakthrough medical advancements, and designs world-class software. But growing an economy that works for everyone means making strategic investments in education, research, and infrastructure (including rural broadband); equipping workers with the skills they need to compete in the global economy; fixing our broken immigration system; reforming the tax code to rebuild the middle class; and opening up new markets for U.S. exports.
To spur robust job growth, we must expand opportunities for Americans by investing in our education system and provide the training and skills that workers need to be prepared for the jobs of today and tomorrow. To accomplish this task, we must support our colleges and technical schools that can help prepare the next generation of farmers, manufacturers, and innovators.
While there is much more work to be done, we have made some progress. I joined the House in passing the National Apprenticeship Act in the 117th Congress, which would create nearly 1 million apprenticeship opportunities and broaden access to paid, on-the-job training. I will continue supporting this bill to get it signed into law.
COVID-19 has created additional challenges for workers and our economy by exacerbating existing problems. That’s why I led an effort in the House to provide more resources to businesses so they can keep workers on payroll and connected to their health benefits. This proposal was incorporated into congressional relief efforts and signed into law in December 2020. As we transition from relief to recovery, I’m also prioritizing new green infrastructure investments that will get people back to work, reignite our economy, and build the infrastructure of the next half-century and beyond.
Keeping Americans safe from the threats posed by terrorism and our foreign adversaries has to be our number one national security priority. In today’s challenging security environment, we need to develop smart responses to emerging threats. I am working to ensure that our nation remains vigilant against all dangers at home and protects our men and women in uniform serving abroad.
Our nation’s safety starts with providing all military personnel and their families with the quality care and financial support they deserve. We cannot meet our homeland security challenges by chipping away at the benefits promised to the brave men and women who risk their lives to serve our nation. Significantly reducing our servicemembers and retirees’ benefits today will only hurt military retention and readiness in the long run.
We also need to prioritize essential national security programs and systems aimed at shoring up our cybersecurity and combating threats emanating from state and non-state actors. The long-term security of our nation — including the safety of our power grid, U.S. businesses, and communities across the country — depends on ensuring that we are prepared with the right tools to counter these growing threats. In the aftermath of the 2020 election and the January 2021 siege of the Capitol, it’s also clear that these efforts must include protecting the integrity of our democratic processes and counter the rise of domestic extremism.
While we need to sustain funding for programs that are critical to our national security, all federal agencies need to be examining their budgets for savings, including the Department of Defense. As Congress tackles challenging fiscal decisions, I will keep fighting to increase efficiency and reduce waste so unnecessary defense spending never comes at the expense of domestic programs that serve as lifelines for millions of middle-class families.
In addition to supporting our military, American foreign policy must address the challenges of global health, poverty, and international development. Aiding the world's most vulnerable populations is not only our moral obligation but also a vital investment in addressing and preventing future crises abroad. America currently spends less than 1 percent of its federal budget on foreign aid, but these relatively modest investments we make in promoting health education, providing humanitarian assistance, and partnering with less developed countries advance our national security interests abroad and have a direct impact on our safety at home. As demonstrated by the rapid spread of COVID-19, what happens abroad can have dramatic consequences here at home.
I firmly believe that women should make their own health care decisions—not politicians.
In June 2022, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, undoing 50 years of legal precedent and triggering a string of extreme state abortion bans to go into effect.
These laws severely restrict women's access to safe, legal abortions. While some states have shortened the time period in which a pregnant person could get an abortion, others will be banning the procedure entirely.
Abortion will remain legal in Washington, but we are not immune from the consequences of this decision. Abortion providers are bracing for a surge in out-of-state patients seeking care. Even more alarming, Republicans in Congress have made it crystal clear that if they win the majority this fall, they will pursue a nationwide abortion ban.
As long as these attacks continue, I will continue to stand against efforts to weaken or subvert access to safe abortions and vital family planning services for women everywhere.
For more than 50 years, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid have provided our seniors with vital assistance to help cover the costs of health care, food, transportation, and other services. As we look back on the decades of success of these programs, we must also look forward to the next 50 years and ensure seniors continue to receive the care they need. I am committed to developing immediate and long-term solutions to address the challenges facing seniors.
Seniors’ Health
Medicare is a lifeline for more than 61 million Americans, and it must be protected for future generations. I strongly oppose efforts to reduce benefits or privatize this program. When Republicans attempted to re-open the Medicare prescription drug “donut hole” in 2013 and 2015, I stood strong in opposition and fought to protect the more than 72,000 seniors in Washington state who have benefited from reforms that reduced their out-of-pocket prescription drug costs. I have also consistently opposed proposals to replace Medicare’s guarantee of medical coverage with a voucher, which would leave millions of seniors with higher costs and without adequate health care coverage. Instead of shifting greater costs onto our seniors, we should work to control the rising cost of care. To reduce costs for seniors, I support allowing Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices the same way private health plans do.
One thing we can take away from the COVID-19 pandemic is the need for increased access to telehealth. Many seniors have benefited from easier access to these services from home during the public health emergency to keep themselves safe and continue receiving care. A bill that I introduced before the pandemic, the Mental Health Telemedicine Expansion Act, was adopted in the 2020 year-end COVID-19 relief agreement and will permanently allow seniors to access mental services from their home through telehealth.
Retirement Security
Improving retirement security for our seniors remains a top priority of mine and ensuring the long-term stability of Social Security is paramount to this goal. For more than 80 years, Social Security has kept seniors out of poverty and provided basic living standards for the middle class. Instead of breaking our promise to seniors and future generations, we should advance forward-looking reforms that strengthen the program and ensure that all Americans can retire with dignity.
Putin’s senseless and violent war on Ukraine is a threat to global democracy, and we must continue supporting the Ukrainian people and hold Putin accountable. The U.S. has so far sent $54 billion in military, financial, and humanitarian aid to Ukraine. In addition to helping deliver assistance to Ukraine, I helped lead the call to provide for the safety and security of Ukrainian orphans who are in the adoption process or have previously been hosted by American families.
This war does not exist in a vacuum. Its impacts are felt here in Washington state with our Ukrainian American community and those with friends and relatives in Ukraine. Additionally, this war has disrupted global supply chains and affecting local families through higher food and energy prices. Ukraine is a global exporter of grain and fertilizer. Russia’s blockade has sent food prices soaring and made it more expensive to grow food at home. Putin’s aggression has also increased energy prices. I know this adds a burden to families. The U.S. and our allies who care about democracy and peace cannot continue to fund Putin’s war chest.
Our tax code is overly complex and too often leads to unfair results for middle-class families and communities of color. The U.S. tax code is long overdue for comprehensive reform, and as a member of the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee, I am pushing to bring our nation’s tax policies into the 21st Century.
Comprehensive tax reform is about creating policies that are fair for all Americans and give businesses the ability to plan for the future. Tax policy should be about growing the middle class and providing economic opportunity. Through a modernized tax code, we can also invest resources here in America, encouraging job creation and innovation.
Current U.S. tax law undermines the competitiveness of domestic businesses and is out of date with the way the world works today. Congress should focus on simplifying our tax code by eliminating inefficient and unfair tax breaks and subsidies that don’t make sense in today’s global economy. Any time our federal government offers a tax break or subsidy, we should consider it as an expense and evaluate whether we are getting an adequate return on investment. Tax provisions that are no longer worthwhile should be eliminated.
That’s why I am championing efforts that provide tax relief for the middle-class including the enhanced Child Tax Credit. The credit is our largest investment in children but still leaves behind one-third of all children who are in families who earn too little to get the full credit. Those left behind include one-half of Black and Hispanic children. My proposal is estimated to lift 4 million children out of poverty and cut deep poverty among children in half by providing up to $3,000 per child (or $3,600 per young child under 6) to families and provide the credit in monthly payments.
I am also the lead sponsor of the Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act, which would create approximately 550,000 new affordable housing units nationwide in the next decade and address the growing housing crisis. Part of this bill was included in Congress’ COVID-19 relief efforts, but we need to do more to expand affordable housing using the proven success of this credit.
During the pandemic, I fought to ensure stability for workers and businesses through an enhanced Employee Retention Tax Credit. The enhanced tax credit was signed into law in December 2020 and provides employers up to $14,000 per employee to cover workers’ salaries and benefits through June 2021.
We need bipartisan solutions that simplify our tax code and help the millions of workers and families across America who are just looking for a fair chance, a system they can navigate, and an end to special interest tax breaks. I will continue working with both sides of the aisle to achieve these goals.
Before coming to Washington, D.C., I had a long career in the technology sector and am a leader of several tech-based caucuses in the House, including the Congressional Caucus on Virtual, Augmented, and Mixed Reality Technologies, the Women’s High Tech Coalition, and the Internet of Things Caucus. I am working to educate other members of Congress on emerging and complex technological concepts and the impact these technologies are having on the way we live, work and do business so that the work we do is forward-looking and grounded in the realities of the 21st Century.
Privacy
As Internet-connected devices continue to change the way we work, play, and live, ensuring that we have strong, up-to-date privacy laws is critical. Right now, out-of-date laws fail to protect Americans’ civil, constitutional, and human rights in a digital world and leave significant uncertainty for U.S. companies doing business domestically and overseas.
That’s why I authored the Information Transparency & Personal Data Control Act, a federal comprehensive consumer data protection bill that will put people back in control of their data, require companies to issue their privacy policies in clear language, and establish strong enforcement mechanisms to protect all Americans.
I’m also fighting to update our email privacy laws by reintroducing the Email Privacy Act that would require the government to obtain a warrant before accessing personal emails and other digital records being stored in the cloud and allow providers to notify customers when the government requests their data.
Telecommunications
The number of connected devices around the world will hit between 30 billion and 75 billion by 2025. With the increased use of these devices comes an increasing demand for wireless spectrum. To meet that demand, we need to ensure that the spectrum is being utilized efficiently so that innovative new technologies can thrive and consumers can safely and reliably use their devices. I introduced the IoT Readiness Act to ensure that enough spectrum is available for our connected devices to function. I will also continue to fight to get everyone access to adequate broadband, including our most rural areas. The COVID-19 pandemic has truly shown us how much we rely on affordable access to the internet and the ongoing disparities that exist when there is not reliable availability and affordability. I will continue to look for opportunities to open more spectrum in ways that responsibly balance innovation and public safety.
Intellectual Property
Strong intellectual property protections are at the heart of the U.S. innovation economy. Without policies that protect innovators, we cannot continue to lead the world in areas from technology to entertainment. We must ensure that systems designed to protect inventors are not abused by bad actors, stifling competition and draining critical capital from the economy that would be better used for hiring workers or research and development.
America’s infrastructure is facing a breaking point. An efficient, reliable, and sustainable infrastructure system is critical to the economy of the 1st District. Unfortunately, many of our roads and bridges are in an abysmal state of disrepair. Across Washington state, there are more than 7,000 bridges, many of which were built during the 1950s and 1960s. We need to invest in improving safety and implementing renovations along I-405, I-5, and Highway 2. These infrastructure improvements will strengthen connections to our ports, support trade, help connect people to their jobs, and spur economic growth. During the last Congress, I helped secure a building permit for the new West Sammamish River Bridge.
Infrastructure goes beyond just surface transportation. It also includes broadband connectivity, affordable housing, and clean energy technology. Looking ahead, we need to prioritize investments that keep our community safe, expand access, and build a sustainable economy long into the future. These projects will create much-needed jobs and stimulate our economy.
During the last Congress, I supported the Moving Forward Act, which would invest in modern, green infrastructure nationwide. Several of my priorities were included in the bill that would expand broadband access, build more affordable housing, and help cities and towns adopt technologies that use resources more efficiently.
The massive task of updating our infrastructure also serves as an opportunity to ensure that American infrastructure addresses our climate crisis through energy and resource-efficiency as well as climate resiliency. It is also a jobs plan and provides an opportunity to get Americans back to work after the economic crisis the COVID-19 pandemic created.
I will continue to work to ensure that an efficient and usable highway system is a priority for the federal government, and work for increased funding to maintain and improve our bridges, highways, and public transit systems. I am also committed to helping to improve passenger rail service, public transit, and our crumbling roads and bridges. I will fight for long-term transportation solutions that allow us to get the best return on our investments.
We have an obligation to care for those who have risked their lives and made enormous sacrifices for our families and our freedoms. I want to ensure all our veterans receive the support and benefits they deserve. That’s why I created a Veterans Advisory Board made up of local veterans to advise me on ways the federal government can better serve veterans.
One of my top priorities is providing veterans with the best possible medical care, and I will continue fighting to ensure that all our veterans have timely access to high-quality health care.
I also believe we need to promote greater access to educational opportunities and job-training programs for unemployed veterans and servicemembers transitioning back into civilian life. Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, the unemployment rate for veterans has more than doubled from 2019. This is unacceptable.
We must ensure that leadership across all federal agencies reflects the diversity of the Americans they represent. For this reason, I reintroduced the Voices for Veterans Act to make sure that the VA is also focused on the needs of LGBTQ veterans with respect to compensation, health care, rehabilitation, and outreach.
Finally, casework is a very important part of my job, and my office is always here to help you. Here are some common services that we can assist you with:
Veterans Health Administration
Veterans Benefits Administration
For too long, the cards have been stacked against the middle class. Our policies have valued the wealthy over workers and financial growth over families. As we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, we have an historic opportunity to recenter our economy around working families and set our children up for success.
I have been a fierce champion of expanding the Child Tax Credit that is providing 36 million families with monthly payments of up to $300 per child, helping parents pay for groceries, rent, and other basic needs. Already, 3 million kids have been lifted out of poverty because of these payments. The Child Tax Credit expansion is a historic tax cut for the middle class but currently only lasts for a year. We must go further and expand the credit for longer, so parents have that predictability as they raise their families.
Another key priority of mine is passing a national paid family and medical leave policy that will help our families and strengthen our workforce. The United States is one of the only developed countries without a paid leave policy. The absence of this support has disproportionately impacted women, communities of color, and lower-income families.
We are also faced with a nationwide shortage of child care options. Over 50% of Americans live in child care deserts. In Washington state, thousands of families are priced out of affordable care. The lack of child care adds up and costs the U.S. an estimated $57 billion in lost earnings, productivity, and revenue every year. I am fighting to make child care more accessible but also affordable for working families.
With proven economic tools and forward-looking, family-first policies, we can transform our economy and the lives of millions for the better. It is my firm belief that when families do well, America succeeds.