Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, Georgia was one of the first States in the country to pass a voter suppression bill after the 2020 general election, but S.B. 202 is just our State's latest attempt to disenfranchise minority communities.

Georgia has a long history of undermining the right to vote, from the Jim Crow era to recent tactics like voter roll purges and exact match policies.

It is time for Congress to fix what the Supreme Court broke in their 2013 ruling, which effectively gutted the Voting Rights Act.

When I came to Congress, I vowed to support the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, and I am proud to keep that commitment today.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 4 and protect the sacred right to vote.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the INVEST in America Act.

This bill provides funding that will accelerate road repairs, reduce congestion, and shore up our water systems, all while creating good- paying jobs and building sustainable, green infrastructure.

Under the INVEST in America Act, Georgia will receive a $2.6 billion increase in funding for core infrastructure programs over the next 5 years, a 38 percent increase. With such an investment, we need to be innovative, forward-looking, and climate conscious.

The bill includes many of my FutureFit The Suburbs initiatives, providing funding for the expansion of greenways, express lane transit options to decrease congestion, renewable energy projects, innovative wastewater technology, and more.

The INVEST in America Act will jump-start innovation that will lead to economic growth in small towns, big cities, and suburban areas like mine.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote in support of the INVEST in America Act.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to address a serious problem facing our country, one that many of us have been dealing with firsthand since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis. As I do so, I also want to acknowledge that while we are headed in the right direction, earlier this week we crossed the solemn milestone of more than 600,000 American lives lost in the pandemic.

Today, I speak for millions of Americans from across the country who lost their jobs as a result of COVID-19. They then did exactly what they had been told to do and filed for unemployment insurance, and then they waited. But in Georgia, for many, that unemployment check never came.

Many of us have received a flood of calls and emails regarding this issue. Currently, my office is processing nearly 150 cases dealing with unemployment insurance, our second highest of any issue area, and the stories are truly frustrating.

There is a substitute teacher in my district who couldn't find work due to the COVID pandemic. When Georgia schools reopened to in-person instruction, she was unable to go back, as she lives with a high-risk family member. In April of 2020, she applied for unemployment benefits and received them for just a short amount of time before they mysteriously stopped, even though she is still eligible. She contacted my office in February, and we have sent five inquiries on her behalf, and not a word of response from the Georgia Department of Labor.

We have another person who was approved for benefits in July and began filing claims weekly but has never received a single cent. That person contacted our office in March. We sent four inquiries. Not a word in response from the Georgia Department of Labor.

Let me be clear: This isn't just the slow gears of government bureaucracy. Every day delayed means a human being has to decide between putting food on the table or keeping a roof over their heads. One such person my office has talked to had their car repossessed and are on the verge of eviction because their government can't get it together.

Along with the rest of the Georgia Democratic congressional delegation, I sent a letter in March asking the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of the Inspector General to conduct an audit of the Georgia Department of Labor, and they recently replied.

What they found was that they couldn't figure out what was going on because Georgia couldn't even supply basic data on a number of key issues, including the timeliness of benefit distribution and the number of Georgians who requested the federally funded unemployment insurance supplement.

There are two other States which were unable to provide data on the timeliness of claims through all three Federal enhanced unemployment insurance programs. There were four other States which apparently did not report the required claims volume data. Georgia is the only State that was unable to provide data on either.

In other words, the Georgia Department of Labor stands out as uniquely unable, by either choice or competence, to report on its administration of enhanced unemployment benefits.

While factors such as initial understaffing and limited technology may have prevented the Georgia Department of Labor from processing claims, after over a year and after over 67 million in Federal dollars to help the State, extensive questions remain about how the agency plans to identify solutions to address the serious backlog that currently exists.

Georgians are lawfully entitled to the benefits they applied for. They are also entitled to transparency and accountability from their government. It is time for answers and for solutions.

Madam Speaker, like so many of us in this Chamber, I spend a lot of time on the road driving from event to event.

As someone who represents the metro Atlanta area, I have spent far more hours than I care to admit sitting on I-85 in bumper-to-bumper traffic. My staff have all had the experience of being on the phone with me as I pull off the road and try to find a spot with a strong signal in order to call into events because there is just no way I will make it in time with all the traffic.

Congestion is one of the issues we all hear about with frequency. It is not a Republican issue or a Democratic issue. It is a question I get frequently, regardless of whether I am at a townhall, speaking to a Chamber of Commerce, or visiting a small business: What is being done to ease congestion?

This question is particularly important as we continue to have a national conversation on infrastructure. Having spent my career in public policy and public finance, I know how important it is that we make smart investments today to set us up for success tomorrow.

That is why recently I rolled out my infrastructure agenda. I call it FutureFit The Suburbs.

FutureFit The Suburbs is a vision to address our growing needs in the suburbs to make smart investments now to prepare for the next century, from preparing for the impact of climate change to building the transit system of tomorrow.

This agenda focuses on the needs of fast-growing suburbs, recognizing the need for transit and congestion relief in order to maintain economic viability while addressing the climate crisis, and doing all of it in a way that leverages public-private partnerships in a fiscally responsible manner.

The key is to do well by doing good. This initial launch of FutureFit The Suburbs contains four initiatives.

First, I am proud to be introducing a new piece of bipartisan legislation today, the Build Up the Suburbs Act, along with Congressman Carlos Gimenez from Florida, and my Georgia colleague, Congresswoman Lucy McBath.

Imagine a regional bus rapid transit system that would run along our major highways and express lanes, developing an electric bus equivalent of commuter rail to help people get from suburban hubs to major commercial hubs while skipping the traffic. The Build Up the Suburbs Act would fund exactly that.

The next time you need to go to the airport, wouldn't it be easier if you didn't have to budget in an extra hour or two just to get there?

Tomorrow, I will be introducing the National and Regional Greenways Act to provide funding for the construction and expansion of greenways across the country, corridors of land connecting disparate communities with beautiful recreational space and environmentally friendly travel routes, thereby reducing congestion and emissions.

This program would support projects like the visionary Chattahoochee River Greenway, a proposed multiuse path that would run along the Chattahoochee River in Georgia.

Beyond immediate transit priorities, FutureFit The Suburbs focuses on how we can be smart in leveraging the power of public-private partnerships to maximize available resources. For example, as more and more shopping goes online, retail malls, and the large plots of land that they sit on, are going unoccupied and unused, taking up valuable real estate. Through low-interest and guaranteed loan programs, these areas can be restored in a way that serves the community.

Finally, creating a national infrastructure bank would provide Federal seed money to leverage significant private sector investment in major infrastructure projects. Private investment is on the sidelines and looking to invest in our roads, bridges, broadband, and electric charging infrastructure.

Change is coming, whether we like it or not. We can make smart investments now that enhance our quality of life, or we can spend a lot more time, money, and effort retrofitting the same projects years down the road.

By investing now, we can help slow the effects of climate change, create jobs, and position the suburbs for success in the years to come.

Madam Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Maloney for yielding.

Across our country, the Asian-American and Pacific Islander community has felt deeply under attack. Over the past year, xenophobic political leaders used dangerous rhetoric to stir up hatred against many immigrant communities, including the Asian-American community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Soon, words became action, and on March 16, 2021, the Atlanta area saw

the tragic and, in some ways, inevitable result when eight lives were taken from us.

The victims of this attack included mothers and grandmothers, fathers and sons, teachers and veterans. These are lives that cannot be restored, leaving pain that cannot be forgotten.

Today, we honor their memories. Tomorrow, the House will vote on a bipartisan and bicameral resolution that I coauthored with Chair Judy Chu of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus. It calls on Congress to affirm our commitment to combat hate and bigotry against the AAPI community and condemns the hateful actions taken in Atlanta.

It is a step in the right direction, but only a step. America is and has always been a nation of immigrants, a fact that deserves to be celebrated. I proudly represent one of the most diverse districts in the Nation, with about a quarter of my constituents having been born in another country.

When one group of Americans is hurting, we are all hurting. Watching my son grow up in our diverse community reminds me that none of us are born with hatred in our hearts. Rather, it is something that is taught.

As we vote today, let's teach compassion, let's teach acceptance, let's teach empathy. I rise in support of this resolution.

Madam Speaker, as we continue to grapple with the issues of race and justice in our country, I rise today to share a story of tragedy and progress from my own district.

More than a century ago, Charlie Hale, a young African-American male in Lawrenceville, Georgia, was abducted, brought into the city square, strung up, and shot simply because of the color of his skin. No arrests were ever made in his murder.

Decades passed. Charlie's name was forgotten, and in a cruel twist of irony, a Confederate monument was erected mere steps away from the site of his murder. And so it stood for decades, until now.

That Confederate monument stands no longer. It was removed following our country's long-overdue racial reckoning this past year. In its place will stand a memorial to the life and death of Charlie Hale.

I want to recognize the leadership of Marlene Taylor-Crawford and her work with the Gwinnett Remembrance Coalition Project, the Gwinnett Historical Restoration and Preservation Board, and all the activists who pushed for this change for years.

The dirt where his blood was spilled will be collected and displayed in perpetuity in Gwinnett County, as well as the Legacy Museum and the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery.

I want to be clear: Even more than a century later, this does not make things right by Charlie Hale or those who loved him and lost him. But it does take an important step to ensure the injustices of the past are not forgotten.

Madam Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Velazquez, Ranking Member Luetkemeyer, and Representative Kim for joining me in introducing the bipartisan Paycheck Protection Program Extension Act.

In 2 weeks, the Paycheck Protection Program, also known as PPP, application period will expire, taking away much-needed help from thousands of small businesses that are struggling to keep the doors open and employees on the payroll.

The PPP Extension Act would extend the application period for another 2 months, ensuring that those small businesses can continue to apply for critical financial assistance until May 31. It also provides an additional 30 days for the Small Business Administration to process applications submitted by May 31.

PPP loans have provided a lifeline to mom-and-pop businesses across the country, including those in my district, that are simply trying to survive an unprecedented health and economic crisis.

In Georgia alone, the Paycheck Protection Program has provided more than 260,000 forgivable loans for nearly $19 billion since the program was created last year. Without that money, we would have lost thousands more of the small businesses that make up the foundation of our communities.

I hear every day from small businesses in Gwinnett and Forsyth Counties who are simply struggling to survive. This bill has its origins in a conversation that I had with local business owners Tony Rodriguez and his wife, Ann-Carol Pence, who own Lawrenceville's Aurora Theatre.

In early February, they reached out to me, concerned about the March 31 PPP deadline. The Aurora Theatre is hoping to receive support through the shuttered venue operator grant program, but due to some delays in

launching that program, they were concerned that with the PPP application period set to end on March 31, they could potentially miss out on critical financial assistance.

While this was one of the first times I heard from businesses in my district about the March 31 deadline, it was certainly not the last. As I talked to my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, we realized we were hearing the same thing from small businesses and lenders across the country: They needed more time to make sure we are reaching as many businesses as possible.

Last year, Chairwoman Velazquez, along with Members on both sides of the aisle, made significant improvements to the PPP loans in order to protect small businesses. Recently, President Biden made changes enhancing access to the PPP loans for the smallest of small businesses, many of which are minority-owned and women-led businesses, such as the ones located throughout my district.

The data show that it is working: 73.5 percent of the loans distributed in 2021 are under $50,000, almost 5 percent higher than what that number was last year. Now is not the time to stop fighting for the mom-and-pop stores, restaurants, and businesses across the country.

Some examples of situations that this bill will address include a local pre-prepared food company that has not applied for a PPP loan because of how the loan amounts were initially calculated for sole proprietorships.

Thanks to President Biden's changes to the loan calculation formula, this business would now qualify for a forgivable loan. However, because of the March 31 deadline, some lenders are reluctant to help out because it is such a short timeframe to evaluate and process these loans.

Another performance venue in Gwinnett County was pleased to learn that the American Rescue Plan we just passed would now allow them to access both the shuttered venue operator grant program and the PPP program, but now they are scrambling to get their loan application in by March 31.

This bill allows additional time to get funding to the small businesses that need it most. This bill is supported by a number of leading business organizations, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Federation of Independent Business, the International Franchise Association, the National Restaurant Association, and Small Business Majority, as well as over 90 additional organizations.

Last, I also want to appreciate and point out that this bill is bipartisan. In this time of deep division in our country, we have all come together to do what is right for our communities, and I hope that we can build on this moment as we continue to tackle the challenges that face our Nation.

I thank Chairwoman Velazquez, Ranking Member Luetkemeyer, Congresswoman Kim, and the House Committee on Small Business for partnering to protect small businesses.

I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support H.R. 1799, the PPP Extension Act of 2021.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of my amendment, which clarifies that the PRO Act does not expand the National Labor Relations Board's jurisdiction over the smallest of small businesses, who help drive the economy in my district and across the country.

The NLRB uses metrics to determine whether a company affects interstate commerce, and, thus, is subject to its enforcement and standards with different thresholds for different types of businesses. My amendment ensures that these thresholds do not change.

In other words, my amendment provides certainty to the small family- run businesses found throughout my district because the labor standards they are subject to will not change under this bill. My amendment protects our employees while maintaining stability for small businesses that are already under so much strain.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this amendment.

Madam Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Lofgren for yielding.

After an election with record-breaking turnout in November, the Georgia General Assembly has recently introduced a number of partisan bills to restrict voter registration and make it more difficult for Georgians to vote. Similar efforts are being made in States across the country.

H.R. 1 would codify into law provisions to protect voters from the systemic efforts to suppress the vote, and I rise in strong support. Every voice must be heard and every vote must be counted.

I would like to highlight my amendment, cosponsored by a number of my Georgia colleagues. It would directly counter the threats posed by partisan voter suppression efforts across the country by ensuring that drop boxes are easily accessible to all Americans, no matter where they live.

It would safeguard access to absentee ballots and promote voter registration efforts rather than trying to limit them. I urge my colleagues to pass H.R. 1 to protect the sacred right to vote.

H.R. 1 will also end partisan gerrymandering, place people over special interests, and enable free and fair elections. I resolutely urge my colleagues to support the adoption of H.R. 1.

Mr. Speaker, this week, as February becomes March, Black History Month comes to an end. But I want to be clear, every month is Black History Month because Black history is American history.

Today, I am thinking of the amazing Black women and men who inspire us daily and who changed the world.

I am thinking of Ruby Bridges who, at only 6 years old, became the first Black student to integrate a southern elementary school.

I am thinking of Gwinnett's own Beauty Baldwin, the first Black woman to be a school superintendent in Georgia.

I am thinking of Hank Aaron, who showed the world the meaning of Black excellence when he broke Babe Ruth's home run record, and he was a proud Georgian.

I am thinking of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., an Atlanta preacher who shared his dream with the world and, in the process, changed it forever.

And I am thinking of Senator Raphael Warnock, who preached from the same pulpit as Dr. King, and who now follows in his footsteps as an advocate for change.

I am thinking of Kamala Harris, our Nation's first Black and first female Vice President, and of all the Black and Brown girls around the country who are finally able to look at the White House and see themselves reflected there.

Finally, I am thinking of our beloved Georgia friend, mentor, and colleague, John Lewis. Congressman Lewis would have turned 81 this weekend. Congressman Lewis spent his life getting into good trouble.

At 21, he was one of the original 13 Freedom Riders. At 23, as the chairman of SNCC, he spoke at the March on Washington. At 25, he led the march from Selma to Montgomery, in the process withstanding all the violence and hatred local and State officials could throw at him.

Congressman Lewis went on to serve Atlanta on both the city council and in Congress for more than 35 years, becoming the conscience of the Congress.

The tireless work of heroes like John Lewis pushes me to continue pursuing equitable and just policies. Over the past 2 years, our country has had a much-needed awakening to the systemic inequality people of color face every single day. I promise to continue using my privilege as a Member of Congress to try to break down that inequality wherever it is found.

In that spirit, I am proud to be cosponsoring some critical pieces of legislation being considered in Congress: H.R. 1, the For the People Act, a transformational bill that seeks to ensure free and fair elections and easy access to the ballot box, to secure nonpartisan redistricting, and to put people over dark money and special interests in elections; the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, the first-ever bold, comprehensive approach to holding police accountable, changing the culture of law enforcement and building trust between law enforcement and our communities by addressing systemic racism and biases in order to help save lives; H.R. 40, which creates a commission to study reparations; H.R. 55, the Emmett Till Antilynching Act; H.R. 959 to address the Black maternal mortality crisis in America; a resolution to recognize the difficulty Black veterans face when returning home after serving our country; and a resolution to award the Congressional Gold Medal, Congress' highest honor, to the Freedom Riders.

Of course, while it hasn't been introduced, you can be certain my name will be one of the first ones signed up to cosponsor the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, which will restore and modernize portions of the Voting Rights Act scrapped by the Supreme Court. The right to vote is sacred. John Lewis knew that better than most, and we must protect it.

Nor is it enough to sign on to these pieces of legislation and call it a day. Just as Black history should be celebrated every month, every piece of legislation we consider must also be looked at for how it will impact our Black communities.

Mr. Speaker, as I deliver remarks today in celebration of Black History Month, I would be wrong to not acknowledge that yesterday was the 1-year anniversary of the murder--yes, the murder--of Ahmaud Arbery. A young man from my State of Georgia, Ahmaud was killed while going out for a jog, a simple luxury that so many of us enjoy without fear of harm.

Ahmaud's case and the way it was handled continue to show us all that inherent biases and systemic racism remain prevalent in our society. We here on this floor must do everything we can to break those barriers down. You have my word, I will continue to do so.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today, as we celebrate Public Schools Week, to talk about the urgent need to protect our teachers, educational support staff, all of their families, and the community at large in our schools.

While the national debate has centered around schools that are closed, in many States, such as Georgia, school districts with high COVID transmission rates are back to in-person teaching, but often without basic safety standards in place, such as requiring students to wear masks on school property.

Teachers and staff in Georgia do not enjoy the protection of strong teacher unions, and the State has exempted schools from liability around COVID. A teacher recognized for excellence in Forsyth County, in my district, chose to quit her job.

She wrote me, saying: Fortunately, my family earns enough money for me not to return to teach, but there are some others who don't have this blessing and are forced into dangerous circumstances. They can't speak up. They know their employment would be on the line if they did. So unless others like me speak up and out, this mess will continue.

Mr. Speaker, I join this teacher in speaking out. We owe our educators the courtesy of basic public health protection. We owe them prioritization in receiving the vaccine.

Madam Speaker, I teach a class called Public Service and Democracy where often I point out that our democracy is not self- executing, it requires people of good faith and ethics to make it work.

Our President and those who enable him are not operating in good faith. I come from Georgia, one of the most contested states during this election cycle and I'm no stranger to fighting for voting rights or concerns about election results.

I've fought for years to protect our elections in Georgia and expand access to the ballot box--so I know a thing or two about free and fair elections.

Let's be clear: Georgia's elections were administered by Republicans who themselves voted for and campaigned for President Trump. So if there was fraud, I'm sure they would have found it. At the request of the President and his surrogates, Republicans have looked high and low for voter fraud and have found nothing.

Georgia officials, at significant cost to the taxpayers I might add, have counted the five million votes in Georgia three times, once by hand, and only found minor errors that would not change the outcome of the election.

They have audited 15,000 voter signatures and again only found the most trivial of problems, and nothing that would indicate voter fraud.

They have investigated every charge, every conspiracy with diligence and have come up with nothing.

The idea that Georgia's vote was illegitimate is a lie. There is no way around it.

But the President didn't like the results, so he tried to extort, bully, and threaten our Secretary of State to change the election results. Now, we actually have attempted election fraud--but from our President. And we have his conversation on tape.

When his plan to solicit fraud failed, the President then incited a violent mob on the basis of lies to come to the Capitol and try to disrupt the constitutionally required certification of the election. This was a mob with zip tie handcuffs, tactical military gear, and weapons. A mob that hung a noose on the mall for Vice President Mike Pence. Then as the Capitol Police made desperate pleas for the deployment of the national guard to help respond to the insurrection, their request was denied by the President.

A democracy requires people of good faith and ethics to make it work. I ask my colleagues to reject the lies and to support the article of impeachment against President Donald Trump.

Madam Speaker, I teach a civics class where I point out that our democracy is not self-executing. It requires people of good faith and ethics to make it work.

The President has repeatedly challenged Georgia's election results. But, despite three recounts and many investigations, the results are clear: Joe Biden won Georgia.

The idea that our election was fraudulent is a lie. Our President used this lie to incite a violent mob to attack the Capitol.

I ask my colleagues to act with ethics and good faith, to reject these lies,

and, in this case, to support the Article of Impeachment.