E-Newsletter: Duckworth Diary - May 9, 2014

Statement

This week, my office held satellite office hours at the Schaumburg Township Library. We met with constituents who needed assistance with immigration, Veterans benefits and Medicare. If you or someone you know needs help with a federal issue or agency, I encourage you to contact my district office at 847-413-1959.

I also spoke to the NPES Association for Suppliers of Printing, Publishing and Converting Technologies. We discussed the importance of manufacturing in today's economy and how their members are playing a crucial role. Our district has more NPES members than any other congressional district in the country.

Working through the night and into the early morning hours, the Armed Services Committee passed next year's National Defense Authorization Act out of Committee. Many of my provisions that I diligently worked on were included. I fought to strengthen the role of women in the military, to bolster how the Department of Defense tracks suicide statistics of family members, to identify and root out areas of government waste and to halt the funding of a poorly-run, multi-billion dollar ship like the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS). I also took key votes that would strengthen our national defense. I look forward to continuing my efforts to identify areas of waste in the Department of Defense while also strengthening our national security and empowering our service men and women.

On Thursday, I met with representatives from British Petroleum (BP) to discuss the recent oil spill into Lake Michigan. I want to make sure they are doing everything they can to remedy the situation and keep our lake as clean as possible.

I also spoke on the House floor in support of new legislation I introduced with Kristi Noem (R-SD) and Madeleine Bordallo (D-Guam). The MOM Act would extend Maternity Leave for Women in the military from 6 weeks to 12 weeks. The bill will align access to maternity leave for female Service Members with the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) guidelines available to federal employees. Mothers in the military inevitably face separation from their children when they are deployed and serving our nation around the globe. Extending maternity leave for these women is the least we can do for those who sacrifice so much for our country.

I am looking forward to a full week in the 8th District next week.

Sincerely,

Congresswoman Duckworth

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