North American Wetlands Conservation Extension Act
Floor Speech
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Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, the people of Connecticut and of the United States deserve no less than the full support of the Federal Government to get them to the dawn of a recovery.
While the House passed a comprehensive bill for the American people back in May, the Senate has failed to act. So we advanced this $2.2 trillion package that includes $2.7 billion for Connecticut to protect lives, livelihoods, and the life of our democracy.
As chair of the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee, I am proud of the investments here for patients, working people, children, seniors, and public education.
For health, we provide $75 billion for coronavirus testing, contact tracing, and isolation measures, and $28 billion for a safe and effective vaccine.
For working people, we must save jobs, protect workers and their families, so we strengthen, expand, and protect emergency paid leave. We restore the expanded $600 unemployment benefit through the end of January. And we continue to support work share programs.
For children and families, we must not allow a generation to be lost or to let their bright futures darken. We provide $182 billion for K-12 education, nearly $39 billion for post-secondary; along with the Child Care Is Essential Act, which I introduced with Chairman Bobby Scott, for $15 billion to save the childcare industry; and then my legislation to make the child tax credit fully refundable, to make it accessible to all, including the one-third previously excluded, including half of Black and Latinx children.
I am proud of the provisions to increase the maximum SNAP benefit by 15 percent, to aid nutrition programs, food banks, farmers and producers, as well as small businesses and restaurants.
Mr. Speaker, let us put politics second and let us put people first. Let us vote ``yes'' on this relief bill for the people of this country, for the seniors, for the children, and those who every day are looking toward the Federal Government because they are in desperate shape and they need our help. They need this legislation.
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