Democrats pass disaster aid

Statement

House Democrats passed a disaster aid bill for the Marianas and other communities struck by natural disaster in 2018 and 2019, after repeated attempts by Republicans to block the bill. The President, who had also stood in the way of passage, signed it. I was able to include special set-asides for the Marianas worth $129.6 million and made sure we are eligible for tens of millions more in recovery grants for schools, Head Start, community health centers, roads, and economic revitalization. Using the amendment process I added $36 million for Marianas Medicaid and $25.2 million for food stamps--also my first two floor votes in the 116th Congress. Behind-the-scenes negotiations yielded $56 million for solid waste and $10.4 million for water and sewer infrastructure. Another $2 million is included to help the Marianas manage the influx of federal money. The congressional office will be following up with all federal agencies that manage the aid programs to make sure funding gets through to the Marianas as quickly as possible.

Source