Dear friend,

Happy Infrastructure Week! Thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, #InfrastructureWeek is now #InfrastructureDecade. This historic funding is creating good-paying jobs, strengthening our nation’s economic competitiveness, and boosting our quality of life. In Delaware, we’ve already seen the impact of this historic law on our roads, highways, and bridges and our broadband infrastructure.

As one of nine House members appointed to Leader Hakeem Jeffries' Regional Leadership Council, I am helping lead the implementation and communication of transformational legislation such as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act for Delaware, Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, and Washington, DC. I will continue to update you on the progress we’re making here in Delaware and across the country as well as the resources and funding that are available through these new laws.

This Week in Washington

Meta Roundtable on the Future of Work

On Tuesday, I participated in a roundtable conversation with Meta, workforce development organizations and advocates for returning citizens, people with disabilities, veterans, and businesses large and small. The focus was preparing our workforce to take on in-demand jobs of today and tomorrow by leveraging emerging technologies such as augmented reality and virtual reality. As Delaware’s former Secretary of Labor, Head of State Personnel, and CEO of the Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League, connecting Delawareans with jobs has always been a central tenet of my work. And now, as the founder and co-chair of the Bipartisan Future of Work Caucus in Congress, I’m leading legislation in my JOBS Agenda package to help build up our workforce and address workforce shortages. Just last week, I introduced the Immersive Technology for the American Workforce Act, a bipartisan bill that creates a 5-year grant program at the Department of Labor to support community colleges and career and technical education centers in developing education and training programs for workforce development utilizing immersive technology including augmented and virtual reality. Our goal is to provide more skills to fill jobs in a safer, equitable, less costly, and more accessible way.

Above: Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester and Nick Clegg, President, Global Affairs at Meta.

Bipartisan Second Chance Taskforce Roundtable

I’m a proud co-chair of the Bipartisan Second Chance Taskforce in Congress which focuses on promoting policies that support successful reentry and prevent recidivism. It’s why my Clean Slate Act is so important – because it gives individuals who have served their time for a non-violent offense a second chance to start over and gain employment, secure housing, or get an education. This week, we hosted a bipartisan roundtable conversation with JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon to discuss the more than 40 companies part of the Second Chance Business Coalition who are hiring returning citizens and how to expand that number and highlight our bills.

From left to right: Rep. Kelly Armstrong (R-N.D.), Rep. David Trone (D-Md.), JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), and Rep. John Rutherford (R-Fla.)

Bill Introduction

This week, I reintroduced my bipartisan bill, the Moms Matter Act, as part of the Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act – a package of 13 evidence-based bills to address the United States’ urgent maternal health crisis. My bill will make critical investments in community-based programs that provide mental and behavioral health treatments and support to moms with maternal mental health conditions or substance use disorders. To read more about the Moms Matter Act and the Momnibus, click here.

Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee Markup

I participated in the Energy and Commerce Committee’s Health Subcommittee Markup on a number of health-related bills including my bill, the Health Center Service Expansion and Provider Shortage Reduction Act, that I introduced last week with Reps. Nanette Barragán and Annie Kuster. To watch my full opening remarks at the Markup, click below:

Answers on Passport Application Delays

As glad as I am to be able to assist Delawareans experiencing passport application delays, you should not have to endure this stress before traveling. That’s why this week, I led a bipartisan letter with 194 of colleagues to the Department of State calling for answers to how they’re addressing these dramatic delays impacting travelers in Delaware and across the country. To read the full letter, click here.

And as a reminder, if you’re experiencing a delay with your passport application, feel free to contact my office for assistance.

This Week in Delaware

I, along with Senator Carper, Senator Coons, Governor Carney and the Biden Administration, announced 29 organizations in Delaware will be receiving more than $65 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) capital projects funding. The projects being funded will help us improve community centers, job training program sites, food banks, the arts and support our youth, our seniors, people with disabilities, and veterans – helping us create a healthier, stronger, and safer Delaware. To see the full list of projects, click here.