Letter to Hon. Nancy Pelosi, Speaker, and the Hon. Charles Schumer, Majority Leader - Prioritize Immigration, Housing, and Transportation in Reconciliation Package

Letter

Dear Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Schumer:

Thank you for your leadership in carrying out President Biden's historic vision in the Build Back
Better Act in the upcoming reconciliation package. As you work to finalize the package, we urge
you to maintain the level of funding for public and affordable housing, immigration reform and
accessible transportation in low-income communities. These priorities are critical to the
economic recovery of New York City, and our great nation as a whole.

Specifically, as negotiations continue to be held for the Build Back Better reconciliation bill, we
urge you to support the following:

* Public Housing: $80 billion for Public Housing. This investment is critical to the
roughly 400,000 public housing residents of New York City. We strongly support this
level of funding as it is vital to build back better and sustain healthy living environments
for many of our working-class families. We additionally request that you maintain the
$37 billion for the National Housing Trust Fund to build and preserve 330,000 homes
affordable to people with the greatest needs. Lastly, we respectfully request that you
preserve the $90 billion to expand rental assistance to 1 million additional households.

* Transportation: $10 billion to support access to affordable housing and enhance
mobility for low-income individuals and residents of disadvantaged or persistent poverty
communities. Additionally, we request that you maintain the $4 billion to support
neighborhood equity, safety, and affordable transportation access, including reconnecting
communities divided by existing infrastructure barriers. Providing and expanding
sustainable public transportation options that connect people to affordable housing, job
opportunities, and education are crucial to combatting racial and economic inequities in
our districts as we work to overcome the global pandemic.

* Immigration: $107 billion to expand safety-net protections and create a pathway to
citizenship for millions of DACA recipients, people with temporary protected status,
essential workers, and farm workers. It is vital that we preserve the entirety of this
funding allocation, not only because these communities have been the backbone of our
national economy throughout this pandemic and beyond, but also because the U.S. is
their only home and refuge from the political, economic, and climate disasters they are
fleeing. Additionally, we are also supportive of maintaining the visa recapture provision
that was secured in the House text.

While the American Rescue Plan and other rescue packages helped address immediate health
and economic concerns, they were not a long-term solution to many of the pressing challenges
facing our nation. We are grateful for your leadership thus far and appreciate your diligence to
deliver the transformative change that people throughout this country urgently want, need, and
deserve. The Build Back Better reconciliation package is a once in a generation opportunity to
build a sustainable and prosperous future for our country-- affordable housing, quality
sustainable and accessible public transportation, and sound immigration reform must remain
priorities in the debate.

We thank you for your tireless work and for your consideration of this request.

Sincerely,

Adriano Espaillat
Member of Congress

Ritchie Torres
Member of Congress

Grace Meng
Member of Congress

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Member of Congress

Yvette D. Clarke
Member of Congress

Jamaal Bowman Ed.D.
Member of Congress

Nydia M. Velázquez
Member of Congress

Carolyn B. Maloney
Member of Congress