Weekly Recap from Rep. Huffman
As I prepare to return to Washington this week to vote on a new coronavirus response bill to expand testing, tracing, and treatment, I wanted to update you on what I and my congressional colleagues have been working on. Over the past several weeks, I’ve joined county Board of Supervisors video meetings, called into meetings with health care professionals, hosted online information sessions for small businesses in our community, and met with students in virtual classrooms. It has always been important to me to have an open line of communication with my constituents, so I hope you’ll let me know what else we can do to support you during this unprecedented health and economic crisis.
Weekly Virtual Office Hours
Starting in March, I have been holding weekly “office hours” on Facebook Live. This has been a great way for me to field your questions and share the latest from our congressional negotiations. I hope you can join me each week on Wednesdays at 2pm PST on my Facebook page.
Committee Oversight
Although in-person Committee hearings have been limited due to health and safety concerns, we are still actively fulfilling our oversight obligations to make sure that taxpayer funding is spent wisely and that the executive branch is accountable to the public.
Image of Natural Resources Committee Virtual Roundtable
I joined the Natural Resources Committee for a virtual roundtable last week where we heard from a panel of experts to discuss the specific actions and decisions that the Trump Administration is making behind the scenes to prop up the fossil fuel industry.
Connecting with 2nd District Health Care Heroes
Health care workers are on the front lines of the coronavirus battle every single day. I have made it a priority to regularly connect with health care workers, county health departments, and public health officers through regular calls and video conferences.
Finding Creative Solutions to Housing
Before the COVID-19 outbreak, the United States already had a serious lack of affordable housing and resources for people experiencing homelessness. Now, thousands of people are losing their livelihoods every day with no place to go. Yesterday, I introduced the COVID-19 SHELTER Act of 2020 to ensure that the federal government supports creative ways to shelter unsheltered individuals during and after the novel coronavirus outbreak.
Helped Secure Critical Fisheries COVID-19 Relief Funding
Last week, we received an important and long-overdue update: $18.3 million of congressionally directed CARES Act funding is finally being awarded to California fishery participants and $5 million to West Coast Tribes who have been hurt by the fallout from COVID-19.
I know this isn’t the end of our fight, and more relief is urgently needed for fishery participants and coastal communities. In my role as chair of the Water, Oceans, and Wildlife subcommittee, I will be holding a virtual hearing next week to provide some important oversight of this program.
Prioritizing National Service
Testing, tracing, and containing are the key to safely reopening the U.S., efforts that will require significant manpower. For the first time in its history, the Peace Corps suspended operations this March. With thousands of volunteers now out of work, I am urging Congressional leadership to utilize this force in the fight against COVID-19.
This is just some of the work I’ve been doing in my role as your representative. If you would like to keep up with what I am doing, please subscribe to my newsletter, and follow me on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. My team hard at work assisting constituents with federal issues. They are always here to help you with problems you may be facing, so please don’t hesitate to reach out to them. You can find your local district office contact on my website here.
