American Rescue Plan Act of 2021

Floor Speech

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Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the American Rescue Plan. This bill provides needed relief for our communities.

Since Congress acted on the last COVID-19 package in December, over 100,000 Americans have died from this deadly disease. Economic growth remains stagnant, millions of Americans remain unemployed, and many worry that their jobs may have disappeared forever. And, even as vaccine distribution efforts ramp up, it is clear that our nation is not out of the woods yet. Metrics of housing insecurity, hunger, poverty are all trending in the wrong direction.

While I have concerns about some of the changes made in the Senate, overall, the package still delivers key aid to hurting communities, individuals, and businesses that continues to be needed. This package helps support child care, a key employment enabler--without which so many women have dropped out of the workforce during this pandemic, according to a growing body of evidence. It provides rental and housing relief to prevent a wave of evictions and resulting hardships in our community. In the long run, it costs the government less to keep people housed than dealing with the consequences that follow eviction.

The American Rescue Plan gives critical support for our state and local governments, which have been on the front lines of this fight while their revenues have fallen. As a result, they have shed public employees at high rates in the last year--a disturbing consequence that must be reversed.

The bill helps put money in the pocket of hurting families, with another round of stimulus checks which if the past is any precedent, will be spent to meet immediate needs. It extends UI, funds SNAP, provides additional help to get health insurance which is even more critical during a public health emergency. It refills FEMA's disaster assistance fund, provides funding so that schools can reopen safely or continue to do virtual learning effectively, provides assistance to public transit systems, and provides pension relief, among many other provisions.

Does this bill do all the things I would want? No. I would love to have gone further to deliver greater relief. But it is a good enough start and helps address some key challenges and will help expedite recovery in our communities on the long and challenging road ahead.

I thank the President for his leadership, as well as the Speaker, and Chairman Neal.

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