Unanimous Consent Request--S. 3685

Floor Speech

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Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, today is July 1. For millions of Americans, the rent is due. Utility bills don't stop, either. But too many New York families and too many American families will be unable to make the payments amid the pandemic that has already hurt my city and its people.

The first of the month should not be the end of the financial line for working families, and that is why we are here. We must continue to put real pressure on Leader McConnell to pass the COVID 4 legislation that would include critical rent relief to families who desperately need the help.

Our working families--many of color and other minority groups--are in desperate need of this basic assistance so they can continue working, feeding their families, making ends meet. That is our push today.

Enact the Emergency Rental Assistance and Rental Market Stabilization Act--which has a $100 billion promise to renters across the country-- and the promise is real help during the real and unprecedented crisis.

Let me give you some background. The Heroes Act would authorize $100 billion for the Emergency Rental Assistance Program led by Sherrod Brown, the ranking member of the Banking and Housing Committee, who has just done a great job letting people know the crisis and now acting on it. What it does is it helps families and individuals pay their rent and utility bills and remain in their homes during and after the COVID- 19 crisis.

The bill was already included in the House-passed and bipartisan Heroes Act, but, unfortunately, once again--as he does with so many other important issues--Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has refused to bring it to the floor, so Senator Brown has come to ask the unanimous consent.

Without basic assistance, even those renters who are currently shielded by temporary Federal and local eviction bans may still face eviction. Let me tell you, once someone is evicted and homeless, they regress. The kids can't go to school. Healthcare becomes even more remote. Getting to a job through public transportation is so difficult.

This actually is a stitch in time that saves nine. If people can stay in their homes because they can't pay the rent through no fault of their own, they have a better chance of reestablishing their lives and maybe even climbing up that American ladder. If they are kicked out of their homes because they can't pay the rent, through no fault of their own, it is very, very difficult. They are in a deep, deep hole.

We must, must do something for them. Senator Brown, with his persistence and passion, has put together the right plan. We talk about numbers, sure, but behind those numbers are the faces of countless New Yorkers we see each and every day on mass transit, walking the streets, working among us. These folks are fine, hard-working people. All they want is a little dignity in their lives and ability to keep a roof over their heads. They need help now more than ever.

We need action on this now, and that is the message to our friends on the other side of the aisle.

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