Jake Auchincloss

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Mr. Speaker, while I will be unable to support the NDAA if it includes a provision that would derail offshore wind production, I thank the Chair for crafting a bill that continues to orient our military strategy toward the Indo-Pacific and for including three of my amendments. The first amendment requires an independent evaluation of the Pentagon's procurement practices to ensure that, in keeping with the law, it drives a harder bargain with the commercial sector. The Pentagon's price tag is too high in large measure because the bureaucracy too often pays for process, not performance. My second amendment would encourage the DOD to use innovative housing production companies to build multifamily homes for Active servicemembers. This will bring down housing and energy costs for military families while also spurring innovative housing development models that will benefit the wider economy. My third amendment would help establish a process for alerting servicemembers about exposure to PFAS so that they may get the care they need. Again, it is my hope that this spurs best practices for wider adoption as Americans in Massachusetts and beyond grapple with the fallout from PFAS exposure.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Mr. Speaker, I strongly support Chairwoman Eshoo's bill to create an Advanced Research Projects Agency. This bill will ensure that ARPA-H can address the limitations of commercial markets and tackle high-risk, high-reward biomedical research in oncology, neuroscience, diabetes, artificial intelligence, mRNA and RNA, cell and gene therapy, and so much more. As the global epicenter of breakthrough science, Massachusetts is a top candidate to host the headquarters of ARPA-H. Not only are we home to the highest proportion of top-ranked research universities in the world, but we also have the best and brightest in industry, healthcare, and academia. We have also invested in infrastructure to support the needs of ARPA- H. Over the past decade, we have delivered 21.6 million square feet of lab space, in addition to over 100 incubators, accelerators, and co- working spaces. This bill specifically directs ARPA-H to advance early disease detection, translational research, and health technologies. It realizes President Biden's goal of driving breakthroughs in cancer, Alzheimer's, diabetes, and infectious disease. From pre-competitive Alzheimer's research at the Massachusetts General Hospital to Vertex's work to utilize stem cell therapies to treat diabetes, we are aligned with and deeply committed to ARPA-H's goal in the Commonwealth. I am proud to represent a State that is deeply invested in the success of ARPA-H. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Mr. Speaker, our economy has not always worked for everyone equally. This is evident in the glaring wealth disparities for American families emphasized in the 2019 Survey of Consumer Finances Federal Reserve report. Chairwoman Waters' Financial Services Racial Equity, Inclusion, and Economic Justice Act is an effort to ease economic disparities across racial and ethnic groups. The bill will also expand access to financial services for consumers and small businesses in underserved communities. Consumers should have access to affordable banking services, which requires competition in the market. Over the last several decades, there has been consolidation amongst banks and credit unions. This has effectively limited the products available to consumers and artificially driven up costs while closing banking branches for people who already did not have many choices. The Financial Services Racial Equity, Inclusion, and Economic Justice Act includes my bipartisan bill, the Promoting New and Diverse Depository Institutions Act, which is the first step to expand competition and increase the supply of banking services. My bill directs banking regulators to work together to address the challenges that new depository institutions, including MDIs and CDFIs, face when applying for a charter. Starting and maintaining a new bank or credit union is hard work. It is the banking regulators' responsibility to measure and mitigate the challenges that new banks face. My bill will help new banks, and in doing so will expand access to affordable services for underbanked communities. The legislation we are considering today also includes other necessary equity bills, such as Congresswoman Garcia's, which expands language access in mortgage services. Congressman Green's bill would clarify that sexual orientation and gender identity are protected classes under credit discrimination. I applaud Chairwoman Waters' leadership on this bill, and I urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate Pride Month by recognizing an LGBTQ-owned local business, The Good Hound. The Good Hound offers off-leash hikes, pet sitting, training, and socialization in my hometown of Newton. I first met owner Shannon Wood when my dog, Donut, joined the group of dogs he helps take care of every day. Every June, we look forward to seeing Donut and all her friends sport pride bandanas as they join Haley for jaunts around our neighborhood. Pride Month is a time to celebrate the LGBTQ individuals we all know and love who are crucial parts of our communities, economy, and families. Congress must stand up and support small, LGBTQ-owned businesses across the country that serve our constituents every day. My family and Newton as a whole are better for the dedication, cheer, and openness Shannon brings to The Good Hound.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of the commonsense gun safety legislation my colleagues and I have introduced this week. The horrific shootings in Buffalo and Uvalde are a painful reminder that action to stop gun violence is long overdue and that Republicans' decades of stonewalling is an intentional decision to allow Americans, including children, to continue to be slaughtered. In particular, the GOP and its gun policy puppet master, the NRA, is obsessed with assault weapons. As a marine, I ate, trained, patrolled, and slept with an assault weapon for 4 years. These are weapons of war designed to kill humans. There is no constitutional defense for civilian ownership of assault weapons even under the District of Columbia v. Heller interpretation of the Second Amendment, and there is certainly no rational explanation for why a mentally disturbed young man should be able to purchase a weapon of war along with high-capacity magazines with no questions asked. The GOP needs to stand up to the NRA and its dangerous and juvenile obsession with assault weapons. Otherwise, this slaughter will continue.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Madam Speaker, I rise today because reproductive healthcare is a human right, but it is under threat. For nearly half a century, the fundamental right to abortion has been upheld by courts. Now, the Supreme Court appears poised to roll back this precedent and steal away the rights of 170 million American women to make their own healthcare decisions. This ruling will create healthcare deserts across the country where women will not have access to the reproductive healthcare they need when they need it. We cannot allow this to happen. The House passed the Women's Health Protection Act, which will codify the Roe v. Wade decision and protect abortion access in the United States. The Senate must follow our lead. We must abolish the filibuster to end minority rule and guarantee basic rights and access to reproductive healthcare. We cannot rely on the Supreme Court to uphold Roe, and so I call on Congress to do so.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to encourage my colleagues to pass a bill recognizing that viruses don't respect borders and that the United States has a moral imperative to lead the world in vaccine diplomacy. The only way to reach our goal of a 70 percent vaccination rate worldwide is to fund global vaccination efforts. We have the best vaccines in the world, and plenty of them, but we lack the political will to use them. Without this funding, people around the world will die, and future variants and surges will be more likely here at home. I implore my colleagues to fund global COVID vaccinations and treatments. A supplemental relief bill that does not fund global vaccinations is not a bill that prevents and prepares for COVID surges. It would be a humanitarian setback and a threat to the American recovery.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for working with me to meet President Biden's goal of deploying 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2030 as we transition to a clean energy economy. While I support funding the Coast Guard, I am deeply concerned that a provision in this bill would prevent us from meeting this imperative. To achieve 30 gigawatts by 2030, the United States will need five to six wind turbine installation vessels. Currently, there are only three in the world. This provision would prevent the use of these vessels and halt the only means we have to install and maintain wind turbines in the short term. Not only would this put those 30 gigawatts of clean energy out of reach by 2030, it would also threaten thousands of good-paying union jobs in Massachusetts. I share the chairman's goal of staffing offshore wind projects with American workers in the long term. Indeed, with my colleague, the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Keating), I have secured funding to help train those workers, but there will be no jobs and no offshore wind energy if this amendment is passed and the development of offshore wind is stillborn. I ask for a commitment to work in conference to ensure a seamless transition to American workers that does not jeopardize access to wind turbine installation vessels for current and future development of offshore wind projects.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Madam Speaker, last week, Congress passed the comprehensive bipartisan government funding bill that, for the first time in over a decade, delivered direct relief to community funding projects. In my district, I worked with local and State elected officials, city and town managers, nonprofit organizations, and community and business leaders to identify top infrastructure, social services, and healthcare projects in need of Federal investment. I thank the Appropriations Committee for fully funding all of these requests, which included a new workforce development institute for offshore wind, the expansion of a domestic violence shelter and a community health center, multiple projects to provide clean water for my constituents, dam and dredging improvements to protect against flooding disasters, and a project to support economic development. This funding bill represents a shift in Congress toward partnerships, good policy, and action. We must work to further advance bipartisan progress in the years ahead.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize my guest for this year's State of the Union address, Massachusetts State Representative Tommy Vitolo of the 15th Norfolk District. Over the past year, we have strived with the Biden agenda to empower States and localities to use Federal funds as they felt best when securing historic relief to rebuild our economy coming out of the pandemic. This strategy has worked because of great partners at the State and local level like Representative Vitolo. From the passage of the American Rescue Plan to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the Democratic agenda is helping people in Massachusetts and beyond. Tommy was a key partner in helping to get relief for essential workers, bringing attention to critical transportation projects, and supporting job growth. I look forward to hosting him as my virtual guest this evening, and to our continued partnership delivering results to the Bay State with the Biden agenda.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the career of Tom Brady. As the Congressman for Foxborough, Massachusetts, I represent the home of the New England Patriots. For 20 of his 22 seasons in the National Football League, Mr. Brady was a Patriot. He brought pride and six Super Bowl victories to my district and to the fans of New England. Mr. Brady embodies excellence. He is the greatest football player of all time, and his final MVP-worthy season is an indication that he was still getting better when he retired. He won 35 playoff games throughout his career. That is more than double the second-place quarterback. Even down by 25 points with little more than 15 minutes on the clock in the biggest game, he never gave up on his team. Indeed, teamwork was Tom Brady's top talent. He elevated others through his team-first ethic and his competitive drive. From the sixth round to seven Super Bowls, the GOAT was always focused on the team, not himself. On behalf of two decades of Foxboro Faithful, I thank Tom Brady for the memories.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to highlight how on-demand transit is a force multiplier for public transportation and a driver of lower costs in Massachusetts and across the Nation. For example, Via has partnered with the city of Newton in my district to provide an on-demand transit service called NewMo, which provides low-cost rideshares for all residents. During a recent ride-along, I saw firsthand the transformational power of on-demand transit, especially for youth, seniors, and people with disabilities, who gain autonomy from the ability to independently access and safely connect to jobs and services. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will bring significant funding to the Bay State to modernize transit, including expanding on- demand transit. This innovation can increase economic mobility, create new jobs, and reduce our carbon footprint. I look forward to working with the Biden administration to leverage the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to expand on-demand transit throughout Massachusetts and across the country.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Mr. Speaker, I urge Republicans to join Democrats in fighting inflation. First, let's acknowledge that pandemic-related disruptions to the global supply chain and to consumer demand have driven up the price of goods. We solve this by vaccinating more people here and around the world, restoring confidence to high-contact service industries, and ending this pandemic for good. Second, let's help businesses hire. A shrunken workforce exacerbates inflation by constraining supply. There are 27 million hidden workers: Parents who took time off, neurodiverse individuals, the formerly incarcerated, and people without a college degree. Passing the Build Back Better Act will unlock registered apprenticeships, industry-aligned career pathways, and other proven job training programs. Republicans may have good ideas, too, like reducing occupational licensing requirements. They should come join the debate in good faith instead of scoring political points off of inflation. Finally, let's hold the Fed accountable to its target of 2 percent inflation. Both parties in Congress should hold the Fed to account to reduce asset purchases and reestablish its credibility on price stability. Let's build on the bipartisan infrastructure deal to offer bipartisan inflation solutions.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of the inclusion of universal childcare and early education as part of the President's Build Back Better legislative agenda. In Massachusetts, a family with two young children spends on average 28 percent of their income on childcare for 1 year. The Build Back Better Act will provide universal, high-quality, free preschool for every three-and four-year-old in America. It will ensure that a four- person Massachusetts family making up to $170,000 pays no more than 7 percent of their income on high-quality childcare. Investing in the health and education of our children is the best long-term investment our country can make. With our future in mind, we must provide access to as many families as possible, as soon as possible. This will require raising provider wages to a living wage immediately and ensuring that more families can benefit in year one when we pass the Build Back Better Act.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Madam Speaker, I stand for patients and taxpayers in support of empowering Medicare to negotiate drug prices and to pass on the savings to lower out-of-pocket costs. We must seize this once-in-a- generation opportunity to make healthcare affordable and to promote the development of new cures. Some policymakers have argued that lowering costs and sustaining biomedical R&D are an either/or proposition, that Medicare negotiation for all drugs in parts B and D must necessarily degrade innovation. I disagree. Cracking down on exploitations of exclusivity with thoughtful policy could turbocharge new therapeutics and lower the price of old ones with the effect of lowering out-of-pocket costs for patients, promoting high-impact science, and saving the government money that Congress can use to expand health insurance for low-income Americans and senior citizens. That policy is within reach, and I strongly support meaningful Medicare negotiation in the Build Back Better agenda.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Build Back Better agenda. We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to address climate change, and we must pass the clean electricity performance program, which uses a novel carrot-and-stick approach to reduce emissions by State utilities. I further support instituting a carbon tax, which would make corporations pay for their harmful pollution and ensure our planet remains habitable for our children. Furthermore, as we invest in clean energy infrastructure to replace harmful fossil fuels, we must end the Trump tariffs on $360 billion worth of Chinese goods. These tariffs artificially increase the cost of materials in solar panels, wind turbines, and other products we need to power our economy with clean energy. Together, we can enact President Biden's agenda to turbocharge the clean energy economy and create good jobs.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to correct the record. Yesterday, while proselytizing about the ongoing case of Stuart Scheller, one of my colleagues demonstrated a concerning misunderstanding of armed service to one's country. Stuart Scheller did not ``stand up to incompetence.'' He broke his oath, one that all Marines take that explicitly outlines our duty to obey the President's legal orders; the same oath I took when I was sworn into the Marine Corps 11 years ago. Yesterday, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs spoke directly to this understanding: the principle of civilian control of the military is critical to this republic. A marine who posts videos of himself saying ``follow me and we will bring the whole system down'' is not a martyr. Stuart Scheller is a liability to our national security, and he will be provided the same due process that our fellow Marines have fought for and died to protect.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Mr. Speaker, in the coming days and weeks, the Democratic Caucus will have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to make transformative change for our children. But if you turn on the news, you will see, instead, a narrative about winners and losers within our party. This is not about winners or losers in the Democratic Party. It is about delivering together on our bold vision. Our constituents are going to remember the results, not the process. That is why we have to come together to make good on our commitment to address the climate crisis, to invest in infrastructure and create jobs, and to lower costs for working families through tax cuts, support for early education, and healthcare. We have an obligation to pass both the Build Back Better Act and the bipartisan infrastructure framework, and we are going to get both done, strengthening our country and creating a better future for our children.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Mr. Speaker, on Wednesday, September 22, 2021, I was unable to vote. Had I been present, I would have voted: ``Yea'' on rollcall vote 269, on agreeing to Amendment No. 5 offered by Rep. Dean printed in H. Rept. 117-125.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Madam Speaker, I thank the chairman for including my two amendments so that we may learn from the mistakes of the forever wars and ensure the Taliban cannot benefit from our financial system. I served in Afghanistan's Helmand Province. I saw what began as a counterterrorism mission mutate under President Bush into a $1 trillion boondoggle of a counterinsurgency. My first amendment ensures that Congress' Afghanistan Commission can access the classified documents behind the forever war and hold to account those decision makers who let the fallacy of sunk costs guide their continual investments of time, troops, and treasure into an unwinnable war. My second amendment directs the Treasury Department to closely monitor illicit financing flowing to the Taliban. This safeguards our financial system and ensures the Taliban can't use it to finance terrorist activities. At the close of this war, we must move forward with the assurance that we will learn from history. Madam Speaker, to increase transparency and counter the Taliban, I urge adoption of this en bloc package.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak in favor of the Build Back Better agenda and the investments it makes in our Nation's care economy. Specifically, I urge the House to invest $250 billion over 10 years in Medicaid Home and Community Based Services. This will give domestic workers a long overdue raise in wages and vastly expand covered services for aging families. Expanding Medicaid will fail a tragic gap in our long-term care system that forces seniors and people with disabilities out of their homes. Today, over 3.5 million older adults and people with disabilities receive Medicaid for home-based care, but because of caps on coverage, 820,000 Americans remain on wait lists. Meanwhile, domestic workers earn poverty wages without access to a safety net. Let's pass both the Build Back Better Act and the bipartisan infrastructure bill to right this wrong, invest in our care economy, and protect American working families.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Madam Speaker, on Wednesday, July 28, 2021, I was unable to vote. Had I been present, I would have voted Nay on Roll Call Vote 242, Motion to Recommit H.R. 4373--Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2022 (Rep. Lee (CA)) to the Committee on Appropriations.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Madam Speaker, on May 12, 2021, I was unable to vote. Had I been present, I would have voted Yea on Roll Call Vote 135, On Ordering the Previous Question to H. Res. 380--Providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 2547) Comprehensive Debt Collection Improvement Act; providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 1065) Pregnant Workers Fairness Act and for other purposes.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Madam Speaker, the bipartisan infrastructure package makes important investments in our country's roads, bridges, high-speed internet, and clean water. But to fully deliver on our Democratic agenda, we must also pass a budget reconciliation bill that invests in a top priority for my district: climate resiliency. Climate change is an ever-present danger to our constituents and communities. Just yesterday, a tropical storm made landfall in my district with intense winds of at least 47 miles per hour in southern New England. With communities at risk of flooding, property damage, and loss of life with increasingly harsh and dangerous storms, Congress must act. Massachusetts is a leader in mitigating and combating climate change, but the Commonwealth cannot do it alone. I urge my colleagues to vote to pass both the Build Back Better Act and the bipartisan infrastructure bill to take the necessary steps to end climate change.

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS

Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Madam Speaker, last week, we celebrated the 200th day of the 117th Congress and 200 days of getting shots in arms, students in classrooms, money in pockets, and Americans back to work. Thanks to House Democrats and President Biden, we passed the American Rescue Plan, delivering funding and relief to the Commonwealth and to Americans across the country. In Massachusetts, nearly 74 percent of adults are fully vaccinated, allowing them to reunite with friends and loved ones, and we have sent over 500,000 stimulus checks to Bay Staters. When I came to Congress, I promised our students and families that they would return to in-person learning. The American Rescue Plan delivered on my pledge, providing Massachusetts schools with $1.8 billion in Federal relief to support their students and staff as they re-entered the classroom. We lifted up our care economy, securing over $1 billion to reduce the cost of childcare and pay our care workers a fair wage. As a parent, I worked hard to provide our working families with the historic tax relief that they deserve. The child tax credit we passed will cut child poverty in half and help nearly 60 percent of children in my district, from Brookline to Fall River. We passed the INVEST Act, a transformational bill that will reimagine transportation while delivering clean energy and spurring job creation. Now, the Senate has the legislative framework it needs to make our infrastructure plan a reality. From the depths of the crisis, House Democrats delivered needed recovery for Americans in just 200 days.