Middle Class Health Benefits Tax Repeal Act of 2019

Floor Speech

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Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the bipartisan agreement reached on the Senate Amendment to H.R. 748, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

This bill will provide immediate relief to my constituents in California's 19th District by providing direct cash payments to families, expanding unemployment, infusing $150 billion investment in our healthcare system, and supporting small businesses with hundreds of billions that will also ensure continued employment for America's workers.

As one of the hardest hit communities in the country, we know that Santa Clara County cannot afford to wait any longer. Our hospitals, health centers, and county health officials specifically need the healthcare investment immediately to add capacity, work toward universal testing, and procure more masks, gloves, and gowns to guarantee our healthcare workers have the appropriate protections to do their jobs safely and effectively.

Families in our community and around the country need immediate assistance in the form of direct cash payments and expanded unemployment insurance (UI). This week a record number of Americans filed unemployment claims. They need this substantial expansion and reform of UI benefits, which includes a $600 increase in the weekly maximum benefit and coverage for self-employed and gig economy workers, like the thousands of tech industry workers in Silicon Valley.

California small businesses need the $350 billion lifeline to help cover rent, mortgage, and utility payments and keep workers employed so that they can pick up where they left off when this crisis is over. In addition, the $10 billion for small business emergency grants will provide entrepreneurs and family-sustaining employers in Santa Clara County with more immediate assistance.

The CARES Act also includes $25 billion for public transit agencies, like the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, to keep service running while keeping employees and passengers safe. An additional $3 billion dollars in grants will keep contracted workers employed at our nation's airports, including at San Jose Mineta International Airport.

This bill will provide much needed and awaited relief for American workers, families, small businesses, and healthcare systems, but it is apparent that more will need to be done. I will continue to work with my colleagues in the House and Senate to address specific community needs in future legislation.

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Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, Americans have voted during times of great strife in the past. They voted during the Civil War, and in the shadow of World War II. Americans stand united to vote this year, as well. Coronavirus must not impede our elections.

Some states are postponing primaries and planning for a large increase in absentee voting this November. State and local officials need time and adequate resources to ensure an orderly election.

The Senate Amendment to H.R. 748, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, provides $400 million to the Election Assistance Commission to make grants that prevent, prepare for, and respond to the pandemic and the 2020 elections. The money will be provided as ``Election Security Grants.'' Although this is an important down payment and a first step, I am concerned that it falls short of what is necessary.

By contrast, the House's Take Responsibility for Workers and Families Act (H.R. 6379), which I coauthored, would have provided $4 billion in funding to states to carry out this year's elections. It would require officials to mail an absentee ballot to all registered voters during an emergency, including COVID-19. The ballot would be provided with prepaid return postage and a self-sealing envelope. It would set a minimum nationwide standard of 15 consecutive days of early voting and no-excuse absentee voting. The House bill would also require online voter registration and same-day registration--important solutions to cover voters who may have been wrongfully purged or otherwise unregistered.

There is more to do to protect our democracy and bolster its resilience. The House's package provides those milestones. I will continue to work with my House and Senate colleagues to address election preparedness in future legislation to respond to this pandemic.

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